The Florida Historical Society

A PRIL 1964 Published by THE FLORIDA HISTORICAL SOCIETY THE FLORIDA HISTORICAL SOCIETY THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF FLORIDA, 1856 THE FLORIDA HISTORICAL SOCIETY, successor, 1902 THE FLORIDA HISTORICAL SOCIETY, incorporated, 1905 by GEORGE R. FAIRBANKS, FRANCIS P. FLEMING, GEORGE W. WILSON, CHARLES M. COOPER, JAMES P. TALIAFERRO, V. W. SHIELDS, WILLIAM A. BLOUNT, GEORGE P. RANEY.

OFFICERS

FRANK B. SESSA, president JAMES R. KNOTT, 1st vice president LUCIUS S. RUDER, 2nd vice president THELMA PETERS, recording secretary MARGARET CHAPMAN, executive secretary

DIRECTORS

ADAM G. ADAMS ERNEST JERNIGAN CHARLES W. ARNADE JAMES H. LIPSCOMB, III MRS. JOHN T. BILLS REMBERT W. PATRICK E. M. COVINGTON WESLEY STOUT MRS. RALPH DAVIS JUSTIN WEDDELL WILLIAM M. GOZA BEN C. WILLIS WALTER R. HELLIER MRS. JOHN R. DUBOIS GILBERT L. LYCAN, ex-officio HERBERT J. DOHERTY, JR., ex-officio (and the officers) (All correspondence relating to Society business, memberships, and Quarterly subscriptions should be addressed to Miss Margaret Chapman University of South Florida Library, Tampa, Florida. Articles for publication, books for review, and editorial correspondence should be addressed to the Quarterly, Box 14045, University Station, Gainesville, Florida.)

* * * To explore the field of Florida history, to seek and gather up the ancient chronicles in which its annals are contained, to retain the legendary lore which may yet throw light upon de past, to trace its monuments and remains, to elucidate what has been written to disprove the false and support the true, to do justice to the men who have figured in the olden time, to keep and preserve all that is known in trust for those who are to come after us, to increase and extend the knowledge of our history, and to teach our children that first essential knowledge, the history of our State, are objects well worthy of our best efforts. To accomplish these ends, we have organized the Historical Society of Florida. GEORGE R. FAIRBANKS Saint Augustine, April, 1857. THE FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY VOLUME XLII APRIL, 1964 NUMBER 4

CONTENTS

MEMOIR OF A WEST POINTER IN SAINT AUGUSTINE: 1824-1826 ...... Cecil D. Eby, Jr., Doris C. Wiles, and Eugenia B. Arana ..... 307

FRAUD AND INTIMIDATION IN THE FLORIDA ELECTION OF 1876 ...... Jerrell H. Shofner ...... 321

MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS, SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER, 1862 (PART II) THE FEDERALS CAPTURE ST. J OHNS B LUFF ...... Edwin C. Bearss ...... 331

WAKULLA SPRING: ITS SETTING AND LITERARY VISITORS ...... Lou Rich...... 351

JONATHAN C. GIBBS: FLORIDA'S ONLY NEGRO CABINET MEMBER ...... Joe M. Richardson ..... 363

B OOK REVIEWS...... 369

DIRECTORS' MEETING, D ECEMBER 7, 1963 ...... 398

N EWS AND NOTES ...... 403

C ONTRIBUTORS...... 412

COPYRIGHT 1964 by the Florida Historical Society. Reentered as second class matter July 2, 1956, at the post office at Jacksonville, Florida, under the Act of August 24, 1912. O FFICE OF P UBLICATION , C ONVENTION P RESS , J ACKSONVILLE , F LORIDA i BOOK REVIEWS

Johns, Florida During the Civil War, by Dorothy Dodd ...... 369 Shepard, Lore of the Wreckers, by E. Ashby Hammond ...... 370 Powell, I Take This Land, by Wyatt Blassingame ...... 372 Ninety Years of Service 1873-1963: The Story of St. Luke’s Hospital, Jacksonville, Florida, by Sidney Stillman ...... 373 Kammerer, Farris DeGrove, Clubok, The Urban Political Community: Profiles in Town Politics, by James W. Prothro ...... 375 Davis (ed.), William Fitzhugh and his Chesapeake World, 1676-1701: The Fitzhugh Letters and Other Documents, by Rembert W. Patrick ...... 377 Brown, The South Carolina Regulators, by North Callahan ...... 378 Hemphill (ed.), The Papers of John C. Calhoun, Vol. 2 by Thomas P. Govan ...... 379 Rogers, Ante-Bellum Thomas County, 1825-1861, by Charlton W. Tebeau ...... 380 Taylor, Negro Slavery in Louisiana, by William E. Highsmith ...... 381 MacBride, Civil War Ironclads: The Dawn of Naval Armor, by William M. Robinson, Jr...... 382 Nevins (ed.), A Diary of Battle: The Personal Journals of Colonel Charles S. Wainwright, 1861-1865, by Hal Bridges ...... 384 Tilley (ed.), Federals on the Frontier: The Diary of Ben- jamin F. McIntyre, 1862-1864, by Allen J. Going ...... 385 Catton, Two Roads to Sumter, by Franklin A. Doty ...... 387 McMillan, The Alabama Confederate Reader, by Adam G. Adams ...... 389 Dufour, Nine Men In Gray, by E. Merton Coulter ...... 390 Norris, We Dissent, by Charles S. McCoy ...... 392 Carstensen (ed.), The Public Lands: Studies in History of the Public Domain, by James C. Bonner ...... 394 Woodward, The Cherokees, by Edwin C. McReynolds ...... 395 ii MEMOIR OF A WEST POINTER IN SAINT AUGUSTINE: 1824-1826 *

Edited by CECIL D. EBY, JR. Annotated by DORIS C. WILES AND EUGENIA B. ARANA

N M AY , 1824, S ECOND L IEUTENANT Alfred Beckley of the I Fourth Artillery, United States Army, reported for duty at Fort Marion, St. Augustine, Florida, where he remained until April, 1826. He was green and untried - a twenty-two year old West Pointer who had graduated ninth in the Class of 1823- and except for his aversion to “French brandy” and “Old Sledge,” he was perhaps a typical example of the officer-gentleman that was the backbone of the peacetime army of that time. Born in Washington City in 1802, Beckley could recall as guests in his home such dignitaries as Joel Barlow, George Clinton, and Thom- as Jefferson, all of them political friends of his father, John James Beckley, one of the founders of the Jeffersonian Republican [Democratic] party. Young Beckley grew up in Philadelphia and Kentucky, where his mother moved after her husbands death in the early 1800’s. He attended the Kentucky Seminary in Frankfort until about the year 1819, when William Henry Harrison took an interest in him and urged President Monroe to appoint the boy to West Point. Harrison even went so far as to “adopt” Beckley for six months in order to permit him to make use of the Harrison family’s tutor. In August, 1819, Alfred Beckley found himself en route to West Point, General Harrison having paid the transportation costs from his own pocket. Following his graduation from West Point, Beckley served briefly on ordnance duty, but his first really important assignment was that of Fort Marion. Fortunately he left an account of his two years at this post, in the form of an incomplete autobiography written many years later, in 1886. Although he had to look back some sixty years, we are nevertheless astonished at his general accuracy, even in the matter of remembering names. There is no doubt that St. Augustine was the brightest spot in his military career, as he himself freely admitted. The climate, the color, [ 307 ] 308 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY and above all, the people were in striking contrast with the harsh bastions of the upper Hudson and the rough forest of frontier Kentucky. It was, at times, like “the land of flowers, in the midst of an apparent earthly paradise.” The subsequent activities of Lieutenant Beckley are readily traceable. He served at Fort Monroe, at Allegheny Arsenal (near Pittsburgh), and at Fort Hamilton until his resignation from the Army in 1836. He had, in the meantime, married Amelia Nev- ille Craig of Pittsburgh, and in 1838 moved to the wilderness of mountainous Fayette County, Virginia, to occupy lands granted by the Commonwealth of Virginia to his father. That same year he was authorized to lay off thirty acres as a town (the present Beckley, West Virginia), which became the seat of Raleigh Coun- ty after its break from Fayette in 1850. In 1849 the General Assembly elected him brigadier general of the Virginia militia. After Virginia seceded from the Union in 1861, General Beckley campaigned in Western Virginia. Early in 1862 he resigned of his own accord and surrendered to a future President of the Unit- ed States, Lieutenant Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes. After the war he became a prolific writer of editorials and verse for West Virginia newspapers and was honored as the “first man” of Beck- ley until his death in 1888. * * * * * Narrative of Lieutenant Beckley After a pleasant short voyage of two or more days we ran across the bar and rounding on our left hand Anastasia Island and passing in front of the old Spanish fort of St. Marks, then altered to Fort Marion 1 by the U. S. authorities, cast anchor a couple of hundred yards in front of the city. I soon disembarked and was introduced on landing to Dr. Richard Weightman, 2 sur-

1. Under the American regime, the fort for over a hundred years was named Fort Marion in honor of Francis Marion, the Revolutionary War hero. An act of Congress, approved June 5, 1942, changed the name to Castillo de San Marcos. 2. Richard Weightman (1793-1841). Appointed assistant surgeon, U. S. Army, June 1, 1821. Stationed in Florida many years, he died in St. Augustine, October 30, 1841. Thomas H. S. Hamersly (comp.), Complete Army and Navy Register of the United States of America from 1776 to 1887 (New York, 1888); St. Augustine News, Novem- ber 11, 1841. Subsequent identification of military personnel men- MEMOIR OF A WEST POINTER IN SAINT AUGUSTINE 309 geon of the post, who gave me a cordial welcome and accompanied me to St. Francis Barracks 3 where I reported to the veteran, General Fenwick, 4 commanding a regiment of artillery. I was kindly received by the General, First Lieutenant Charles Despin- ville, 5 commanding G Company, Lieutenant J. B. Scott, 6 Horace Bliss, 7 Harvey Brown, 8 and Second Lieutenant Edwin R. Al- berti. 9 I was assigned to Light Company A and was its only officer, but First Lieutenant Harvey Brown of G Company, owing to my youth and inexperience, was placed in temporary command of the company. However, in a few weeks he was appointed aide de camp to the Commanding General, Jacob Brown, and left for headquarters, and the company fell to my charge. I was appointed post adjutant. General Fenwick, Lieutenants Scott and Bliss left in a few days, and Lieutenant Despinville succeeded to the command of the post.

tioned in this article is from Hamersly Register and/or Register of Graduates and former Cadets United States Military Academy (New York, 1946). 3. For 200 years prior to 1763 this was the site of the Convent of St. Francis, headquarters of the Franciscan missionaries in Florida. Constructed of coquina about 1756, the buildings were converted into military barracks by the British. After Spain regained control of Florida, Spanish troops were quartered here until the United States acquired Florida in 1821. The barracks remained a military post until 1900 when the post was abandoned by the U. S. Army. In 1907 they were leased to the State of Florida for military purposes and Florida’s military headquarters was transferred there from Talla- hassee. The interior was burned in 1915, but was restored in 1922 after Congress donated the reservation to the state for military use exclusively. It is now the Florida State Arsenal. 4. Brig. Gen. John R. Fenwick ( ? -1842). Transferred to 4th Artillery, June, 1821; Brevet Brig. Gen., 1823. 5. 1st Lt. Charles Despinville, graduated West Point 1817; 1st Lt., September 10, 1819; transferred to 4th Artillery, June, 1821; died in France, 1830. 6. 2nd Lt. John Benjamin Scott (1801-1860). Graduated West Point, 1821. Scott, a close friend of Beckley in West Point, encouraged him to apply for duty in Florida. 7. 2nd Lt. Horace Bliss (1802-1878). Graduated West Point, 1822. 8. Major Gen. Harvey Brown (1796-1874). Graduated West Point, 1818; transferred to 4th Artillery, August, 1821; 1st Lt., August, 1821. Married Ann Eliza Rodman in 1824, daughter of John Rod- man, Collector of Customs in St. Augustine. Was in charge of re- pairing St. Francis Barracks, 1822-3. 9. 2nd Lt. Edwin R. Alberti. Admitted to West Point 1814 (did not graduate); 2nd Lt., Light Artillery, July 12, 1820; transferred to 4th Artillery, June, 1821. Accused of theft in 1826, he was tried by court martial, but was completely exonerated. Resigned July 31, 1827. 310 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

I found St. Francis Barracks a splendid, comfortable affair. It was originally an old Spanish monastery which the British in the Revolutionary War occupied as a barracks. It had become dilapidated excepting the walls, and when the U. S. troops took possession under the treaty of Cession was uninhabited. General Abram Eustis 10 had them completely and elegantly repaired. The Barracks had two wings of four handsome rooms connected by a central building in the form “H.” The central portion was sur- mounted by a lofty and handsomely and tastily built cupola at least 100 feet above the barrack yard, the flag staff extending above from the centre. This cupola, with the help of a glass, commanded an extensive view of the ocean for thirty miles distance. . . . I often resorted to it with a powerful spyglass, antici- pating and waiting on the arrival of the packet from Charleston and seeing the passing ships, in looking down on the white houses and the green orange and fig groves of the city or upon Fort Marion on the northern end of the city, the Island of Anastasia, and its lighthouse 11 opposite. The soldiers occupied the lower floor of the two wings - G Company in the north wing and A Company in the south wing. The second story was divided into officers quarters, quartermaster, commissary, adjutant offices, mess room, store room, &c. The upper story was approached by stairways leading up on wide covered corridors or piazzas on both sides of the central building, the whole length of the south wing overlooking the garden, the privies, &c. The guard house and kitchen of the two companies occupied a one-story brick building extending along the south side of the parade ground on the west side of the barracks. There was a fine capacious garden laid off on the south of the barracks picketed in and separated by a wall from the yard near the south wing containing the officers’ privies, kitchen, &c. and opening in- to the gardens. My room was in the south wing adjoining the officers mess room. The commanding officers quarters were in the eastern part of the same wing, but Lieutenant Despinville occu-

10. Col. Abraham Eustis transferred to 4th Artillery, June, 1821. Lt. Col., May, 1822; Brevet Col., September 10, 1823. Commanding Of- ficer, 4th Artillery, in 1821, for St. Augustine and Amelia Island. 11. Rehabititation of the old Spanish watchtower on Anastasia Island had just been completed by the U. S. Government at a cost of $5,000. On April 5, 1824, the tower was illuminated for the first time. MEMOIR OF A WEST POINTER IN SAINT AUGUSTINE 311 pied a room in the north wing assigned to the officers of G Com- pany. The surgeon, Dr. Weightman, had a room in the same wing and Lieutenant Edwin Alberti had his quartermaster and commissary office in the same. St. Francis Barracks was in the southern end of the city, and Fort Marion was north of the city, about one mile distant from the barracks. We had our magazine there and had a daily corporal’s guard mounted there and kept our prisoners there. I found St. Augustine to be all that my friend Lieutenant J. B. Scott had represented in his letters, a very delightful and sa- lubrious station, the mild tropical climate so different from that in which I had heretofore lived. The cool, refreshing daily sea [breeze] from the Atlantic Ocean moderated the intense heat of the tropical sun, while the night breeze across the peninsula from the Gulf of Mexico kept the nights cool and pleasant, so that though sleeping under musquito [sic] bars, a light blanket was not oppressive. Then the delicious fruits of the tropics-the oranges and figs so refreshing to a relaxed system, and the variety and abundance of fine fish and game. Then the striking appearance to a Northerner of this ancient city, the first city of this Southern country, founded in the year 1565, with its snow white houses built of a concretion of sea shells most likely antediluvian. When dug out of the earth so soft and pliable as to be shaped by the axe, but after exposure to the air [the stone] becomes hard as flint. 12 The narrow streets and access to the houses by way of gates through the walls of the yards. The manners and customs of the proud old Spanish families and the Minorcan 13 settlers (the latter fishermen). The females of both classes so graceful in their manners and of such dignity of deportment blended with those of the American families which had settled in the city since the cession of Florida to the Union. All constituted a striking, unique, and very attractive station to a youth of twenty-two years. I was in the land of flowers, in the midst of an apparent

12. Called coquina by the Spaniards. A conglomerate composed of frag- ments of marine shells. 13. Colonists from the Mediterranean area brought to New Smyrna, in 1768 by Dr. Andrew Turnbull. Refugees from this unsuccesful venture emigrated to St. Augustine in 1777 and their descendants formed the nucleus of its resident population when the United States acquired Florida in 1821. 312 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY earthly paradise, and we gentlemen of the epaulet had the freedom of the city and went in and out among the upper [families], both Spanish and American, as well as among the more humble and illiterate, but no less graceful, Minorcan ladies. I spent two years very agreeably in this ancient, most social and interesting city. My military duties were generally light and pleasant most of the time, and I was post adjutant, and acted as officer of the day in my turn. My brother officers, all older in rank as well as in age, were frank companions and while they played cards at a high figure and imbibed more or less of “l’eau de vie”-French brandy-yet I must do them the justice to say they never tried to entice me into their habits of card playing and drinking brandy. I aimed at the character of a good, efficient officer, and I am sure my fellow officers accorded it to me. Lieutenant Despinville, Canfield, 14 Dr. Weightman, and myself messed together, each of us in turn acting as caterer for a month, and we each paid monthly an equal share of the expenses. We had a black cook, named Joe, who could not be excelled in any cooking, but in turtle soup he was inimitable. We lived well though not without due economy and management, our pay then not being as good as it was afterwards. After some time Bvt. Major William Wilson, 15 an old veteran officer first commissioned as ensign by Washington, was assigned to the command. He was old, rheumatic and consequently very choleric and testy. When he arrived in the packet, he had to be carried from the barge to the barracks and put into his bed, to which he was confined five or six weeks before he could walk. As his post adjutant, I was with him a great deal and found him in possession of an inex- haustible fund of anecdotes and entertaining stories acquired during his long, diversified experience. He amused me for a season but sometimes I had some difficulties in our official intercourse owing to his hasty, testy humour. When enraged, he swore like a trooper, but we soon learned his peculiar character and his idiosyncracies, and by humoring him got along very well with

14. 2nd Lt. Augustus Canfield (1801-1854) graduated from West Point in 1822, one year ahead of Beckley. Transferred to 4th Artillery, February, 1823. 15. Major William Wilson, Lt. Artillerists and Engineers, 1794; Major, 4th Artillery, May, 1822; died, September 15, 1825. LIEUTENANT BECKLEY

MEMOIR OF A WEST POINTER IN SAINT AUGUSTINE 313 him. He was a man of a brave, magnanimous, generous, frank spirit, and when passion had subsided was always prompt to apologize and make amends for his ill temper. Being a bachelor, he joined our mess as an honorary member, merely paying his quota of the expenses. His health was very infirm during his stay among us, and in a year or so he had to leave on sick furlough and never returned to the command but died at Berkeley Springs in Virginia some time in 1827 [sic]. In his last moments he made the following characteristic nuncupative will - “A soldier’s word is a soldier’s will. I give all I possess to my sister Eliza.” (The Major had several thousand dollars in banks saved from his pay, and his old maiden sister was made comfortable for the resi- due of her life.) The native population were all Roman Catholic. They had an ancient, venerable cathedral built of the shell-stone, but by no means a “chef d’oeuvre” 16 in architectural design. When there was no Protestant service we attended it. And it was not an un- interesting spectacle to see the veiled Spanish Minorcan beauties gracefully kneel upon the hard stone floor during Mass, and they were not SO devout as to preclude the telegraphic sign “sub rosa” between lovers. We occasionally had Presbyterian preaching and on one or two occasions we had Episcopal service by the Reved. Dr. Phillip Gadsden, brother of Col. James Gadsden, and afterwards Bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina. 17 During his visit here we visited with him the casemated dungeon in Fort St. Marks in which the British in the Revolutionary War immured his father, an eminent American patriot, for some months. There was a series of horrid, dark prison cells in the fort characteristic

16. “Chef-d’oeuvre”: masterpiece. 17. Reverend Philip Gadsden, son of Christopher Gadsden, the Revolu- tionary War hero who was imprisoned in the Castillo de San Marcos for several months during 1780-81. Records of Trinity Parish Church state that he held services here from August 15 until Octo- ber 26, 1825. Col. James Gadsden (1788-1858) was the son of Philip and grandson of Christopher. He opposed Joseph M. White and Joseph M. Hernandez in 1825 as territorial delegate to Con- gress and was defeated. (See Herbert J. Doherty, Jr., Richard Keith Call: Southern Unionist, Gainesville, 1961, 43.) Trinity Parish Rec- ords also state that James’ brother, the Rev. Christopher Edwards Gadsden, while serving as Rector of Charleston’s St. Philip’s Church, visited St. Augustine, October 19, 1824, and adminstered the Holy Sacrament and baptised several children. It was the Reverend Chris- topher E. Gadsden who later became Bishop of South Carolina. 314 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY of that jealous, ironhearted Spanish people, the great promoter of the infernal Inquisition, and our English brethren in their bitter hatred of our Revolutionary fathers did not suffer these cells to fall into disuse. We also visited the grave of officers and soldiers, victims of the yellow fever in 1821, 18 just after the cession, in- terred upon the glacis of the fort. During my residence at St. Augustine when Col. James Gads- den was a candidate for Delegate to Congress in opposition to the Hon. Joseph M. White (my old schoolmate at the Kentucky Seminary in Frankfort), the Colonel obtained Major Wilson’s consent to his giving a military ball to the people of the city in Fort St. Marks (or Marion), and requested my brother officers and myself to act as managers. I was one of the most active managers and finding that there were stored away in an old disused magazine 19 south of the city in the fork of the Matanzas and 1 St. Sebastian Rivers a 13-inch and a 5 /2-inch brass mortar and a good many old bombs, I obtained permission from Major Wil- son to entertain the company by throwing a few shells into the sea. I had detached Sergeant Beale of Company G and under my instructions he and a party of soldiers filled more than a hundred shells, large and small, and fitted fuses to them. I mounted the mortars in the mortar battery in the southwest bastion and stored away the loaded shells in ammunition houses mounted on wheels, which the Spaniards and the British used to supply the 42-pounders mounted on the ramparts. These guns were very old, rusty, and honeycombed from long exposure to the weather and were mounted on old dilapidated wooden carriages like those used upon ships in old time. I had twenty of these cannon heavily charged with powder and hard wads, and stuck pieces of portfire 20 of different lengths to the touch-holes so that the first gun would not fire till the last portfire was lighted so that the guns

18. In the fall of 1821 St. Augustine experienced a disastrous epidemic of yellow fever. In addition to the military burials on the glacis of the fort, numerous civilian deaths necessitated opening a public burial ground just north of the City Gate, now called the “Huguenot” cemetery. 19. Probably refers to the Spanish Powder House which stood near the present site of the St. Johns County Senior Citizens’ Home. 20. Portfires: A fire carrier; specifically a paper case filled with a composition of niter, sulphur, and mealed powder, used in firing guns. MEMOIR OF A WEST POINTER IN SAINT AUGUSTINE 315 would be successfully fired like a salute and no danger to the soldiers from the bursting of the guns, of which there was some fear. Then I had large piles of firewood in the four bastions. The signal for the company to repair to the fort was the blazing of these bonfires and the discharge of the great guns in succession. We fitted up the large casemate used by the Spaniards as the chapel of the fort for the supper room and had placed plank floors in several large casements 21 for dancing. Besides this, I had caused a large pile of old fuses, portfires, and several barrels of old rosin found in the magazine to be lighted while the company were dancing so as in my programme to startle the folks with a sudden dazzling, splendid illumination, which I the pyrotechnic projector honestly intended as the feature of the military ball. The supper was a success. But while the ladies and gentlemen were whirling about on the “light fantastic toe,” when fire was applied to the pyrotechnic pyramid there was an illumination but it was accompanied by an intolerable, dense, suffocating smoke. It was driven by the sea breeze upon the company and they had to make their way from the “terra plain” [sic] 22 of the fort by the sloping ramps up to the ramparts. I then, like a skill- ful general after being thus flanked by my failure, determined to make a diversion. I speedily marshalled the company into a promenade on the ramparts and just as the head of the procession had reached the front curtain 23 and the mortar battery was uncovered I called upon the bombardiers and bang went the 13-

21. Castillo de San Marcos is a square fort with a bastion projecting at each corner. The interior is an open court (parade) about 100' square. Around this square are thirty-one rooms (casemates) most of which open upon the court. The roof over the rooms and the bastions is the terreplein or rampart of the fort, where the cannon are mounted. 22. Lt. Beckley mistakenly refers to the “terra plain.” From his description it is clear that the pyrotechnic bonfire was in the courtyard and the guests, after being smoked out of the casemates, came into the courtyard and went up the ramp to the terreplein which, since it is on the windward side, would be clear of smoke. They would have had a fine view of the bonfire in the open court below. 23. The south wall of the fort is the “front curtain.” The guests’ consternation was completely justified. The thirteen-inch mortar was the largest weapon of its era. The mortars were in the southwest bastion, only 100-200 feet away from the procession as it marched along the south wall of the fort. Surely this was a memorable night for the civilians. 316 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY inch mortar, throwing a shell seaward. Such a consternation- screaming, outcry, and fainting - was caused by the stunning concussion of the air as to have driven away all recalling my pyrotechnic disaster. After recovering from the alarm, the ladies and gentlemen seemed amused and interested in my mock bombardment and watched the flight of the shells with their burning fuses and their bursting over the sea and in the marshes of Anas- tasia Island, causing the marsh hens to squall. Meanwhile our long continued bombardment disturbed the choleric commander at St. Francis Barracks and divers orderlies came to find Adjutant Beckley and have the firing cease. But somehow or other, the Adjutant was “non est inventus,” being perhaps hid in the smoke of the smouldering pyrotechnic pile until the last shell harmlessly burst in the marshes. It was not difficult to appease the Major’s anger. Our military ball was a very noisy, startling one, but the result was not more effective in Colonel Gadsden’s favor then in my harmless bombardment, as Joseph M. White defeated him badly in the canvass. 24 While there I joined a number of genteel, pleasant citizens in a Thespian association: 25 viz., Francis J. Fatio, 26 John H. Lawrence, 27 G. M. Wilson, 28 B. A. Putnam, 29 James P. Cot-

24. Joseph M. White was elected territorial delegate to Congress in April, 1825. His opponents were Col. James Gadsden and former (appointed) Territorial Delegate Joseph M. Hernandez. White’s election to the 19th Congress was the beginning of a distinguished career in the House of Representatives, which ended with his sixth term in March, 1837. Harry G. Cutler, History of Florida Past and Present, Historical and Biographical, 3 vols. (Chicago and New York, 1923), I, 113. 25. The Thespian Society of St. Augustine. 26. Francis Joseph Fatio (1793). Third generation of this Swiss family in Florida, the son of Philip Fatio and Jane Cross. A man of versatile talents and accomplishments, he held various positions in St. Augustine including those of alderman (1821) and public translator. Gertrude N. L’Engle, A Collection of Letters, Information and Data on Our Family (Jacksonville, 1951), 41. 27. John H. Lawrence was from Charleston, and his wife was Maria Anadette Fuentes of St. Augustine. Lawrence was secretary of the Thespian Society of St. Augustine. St. Augustine East Florida Her- ald, July 19, 1825; St. Johns County Marriage Bonds. 28. George M. Wilson was an attorney and esteemed member of the Thespian Society. He died July 18, 1825, at age twenty-five. St. Augustine East Florida Herald, July 19, 1825. 29. Benjamin Alexander Putnam (1801-1869) was born in Savannah, Ga. He was a lawyer, soldier, member of Florida legislature, judge, MEMOIR OF A WEST POINTER IN SAINT AUGUSTINE 317 ton, 30 Robiou Lewis Hugnon, 31 and Rodgers 32 (who was after- ward murdered by Oseola). Fatio and Lawrence were excellent actors and I myself no slouch. Fatio could handle the brush and painted good scenery, especially a kitchen scene. My brother officers and the citizens contributed liberally and we rented a small tenement upon (and indeed over) the water, 33 which we humor- ously called “Fishmarket Theatre” after the celebrated London theatre. We sent to Charleston and bought some beautiful French landscape paper and fitted up quite a respectable [blank]. I find by reference to the minute book of the society, still pre- served by me for sake of “auld lang syne,” that we opened on Tuesday evening, the 8th of February, 1825, by performing the comedy of “John Bull, or the Englishman’s Fireside” 34 [and?] the farce of the “Beehive Industry Must Thrive.” Our seats were all crowded and nothing could exceed the delight expressed by the ladies, especially the Spanish ladies, our performance brought us the plaudits of the house, and we had assiduously devoted ourselves to make it a success. And now sixty years have elapsed, but doubtless a tradition exists to this day in St. Augustine of our “Old Fishmarket” and its actors, many of whom have long since made the final exit from the great mundane stage of human action. John H. Lawrence perished by shipwreck between St. Augustine and Cuba - “Poor Jack” as we nicknamed him was a frank, openhearted gentleman. G. M. Wilson died at St. Au- gustine, and Rodgers was murdered at Fort King by Oseola, the great brave of the Seminoles. After seven nights performance of various plays during 1825, the society ended on 5th April of 1826.

and first president of The Historical Society of Florida, Putnam County, Florida, is named for him. 30. Probably James P. Cotter, who opened a private school of instruction in English and classical subjects in St. Augustine in 1823. At the time of his death in 1829 he was presiding judge of the St. Johns County Court. St. Augustine East Florida Herald, February 1, 1823; October 15, 1829. 31. Probably Lewis Huguen, a native of France, who died in St. Augus- tine in 1829. St.Augustine Florida Herald, August 19, 1829. 32. Erastus Rogers was killed by Indians on December 28, 1835. John T. Sprague, The Origin, Progress and Conclusion of the Florida War (New York, 1848), 89. 33. Not located. 34. “John Bull; or, The Englishman’s Fireside” was a comedy in five acts written by George Colman and first performed in Covent Garden in London on March 5, 1803. 318 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

I have told about our amateur Thespian affair which pleased and electrified the people of the City, especially the Spanish ladies, but my enjoyment particularly of the customs, games, and sports of the carnival season, the masking parties - going every evening from house to house where the fun was to discover and unmask the maskers where they danced the fascinating Spanish fandango 35 and had music and refreshments. To prevent any abuse of the masking custom, the head of each masking party unmasked himself to the head of the family visited and was responsible for the genteel behaviour of his party that there may have been some small flirtations possible but the masking was innocent without the least scandal. The Minorcan ladies, though the best families held them as an inferior caste, were yet though very illiterate as dignified in carriage and as graceful as the superior caste. We officers of St. Francis Barracks associated with all classes and [were] friendly to each. During the Carnival season the Minorcan ladies kept up for eleven nights what they called “Posey Dances.” For the first dance they chose a Posey King and Queen and paid the cost by donations. But on the second night the Posey Queen holding two bouquets of Spanish pinks in her hands, by the presentation of these to any gentleman made him Posey King for the next dance and he chose his Queen by presenting one of the bouquets to any lady made her his Queen and he had to pay the costs of the Party. The Minorcan ladies prepared an altar of a number of steps or shelves called the Posey Altar, tastily and profusely decorated with the rich Florida flowers lighted up with wax can- dles, and it made a splendid spectacle. 36 There was a Board of the U. S. Land Commission sitting at St. Augustine, a tall awk- ward man named Allen, 37 who had very large feet, which the Spanish ladies consider very ugly, and he was of very close miser-

35. Fandango: A lively Spanish dance performed by a man and a woman with castanets and in triple measure. 36. John Lee Williams, Territory of Florida (New York, 1837), 116. (New York, 1837), 116. 37. William Henry Allen was a native of Be1 Air, Maryland. He was appointed land commissioner for East Florida, August 12, 1824, to examine claims for property under the Spanish land grant program. Clarence Edwin Carter (ed.), The Territorial Papers of the United States: The Territory of Florida, 1824-1828 (Washington, 1958), XXIII, 36-37, 216. MEMOIR OF A WEST POINTER IN SAINT AUGUSTINE 319 ly disposition. When the first dance was about to open, the officers and a number of citizens were about the door and Allen among them. I tried every persuasion and inducement with Al- len but he would not go in. It was proposed that we, the officers, should go in. We did so and while I was admiring the altar with its flowers and lights a young black-eyed Minorcan lady, the Posey Queen, presented me the two bouquets, constituting me Posey King for the next dance. It seems that seeing my efforts to catch Allen, they made a counterplot upon me. Well, I made the most of it. I went around among the ladies and after coquet- ting with a number I gave the bouquet to a pretty, modest young lady called Bonita [Nollia ?] 38 and getting the aid of my soldiers I had the room hung with evergreens, and the cost was under $20 for the music and refreshments. As I never drank intoxicating liquors and never played cards and was fond of my military duties, most of the infantry drilling and artillery practice devolved on me and usually filled up the hours of the day, and in the evening visited the young ladies and enjoyed with them many pleasant walks in the bright & splendid Florida moonlight, it so transparent and clear as to permit you reading the smallest print. The nights were so delightful with the cool Gulf breeze that you did not court sleep and in the night you needed a thin blanket, but always within the shelter of a mosquito net. Upon the whole I never spent two more delightful and agreeable years of my life than I did among the flowers and fruits of the tropical climate, and my recollection of the amiable, friendly citizens of that ancient city of St. Augustine is among my most pleasant memories. Sometime in October, 1825, about 2 o’clock A.M., a West Indian hurricane or tropical cyclone from the northeast burst upon the harbor and the city. The waters of the Ocean immersed the northern end of St. Anastasia Island, leaving only the lighthouse in sight and fell upon the city in showers of salt water, falling not by drops but by buckets, biting the orange leaves like frost. The streets were all inundated, and thousands and ten thousands of oranges were blown off the trees and floated in the streets. The Ocean broke over the houses on

38. Probably Miss Benita Noda. 320 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

the edge of the harbour with its foam and spray. The thunder was most astounding, attended with the keenest and sharpest lightning I ever saw. The wind blew with irresistible fury and five or six vessels at anchor in the harbour were driven high and dry upon the shore. The framework and timbers of the vast roof of St. Francis barracks and of the lofty cupola groaned and cracked fearfully, and we thought we would be unroofed, but the Storm King, after showing his power, quickly passed south- wardly toward Cuba and the Keys, and strange to tell at 9 A.M. there was no vestige of the storm but the blown off oranges in the streets, the vessels ashore high and dry, but the sea was as smooth as a looking glass without the slightest ripple. 39 Such are the sudden changes in tropical climates.

(*This excerpt from the Beckley autobiography was made available by Professor Paxton Davis, Washington and Lee University, great-great grandson of Alfred Beckley.)

39. On Sunday, October 2, 1825, a strong wind raised the water in St. Augustine harbor about four feet above the high water mark. The resulting swell undermined the foundation of several houses along the bayfront, one stone building was demolished, and the market house in the Plaza was thrown down. Four schooners were forced ashore, one of which stove in an outbuilding. St. Augustine East Florida Herald, October 4, 1825. FRAUD AND INTIMIDATION IN THE FLORIDA ELECTION OF 1876

by JERRELL H. SHOFNER

HE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION of 1876 was the most con- T troversial election in American history. It is remembered because of the extended dispute over its outcome and because it has since been regarded as the end of Reconstruction in the South. The uncertain outcome was due to duplicate electoral certificates from Florida, South Carolina, and Louisiana. These were the only Southern states which still had Republican governors. By various combinations of fraud and violence, both Democratic and Republican parties in these three states had managed to secure electoral certificates for their respective presidential candidates. Samuel J. Tilden, the Democratic candidate, received 184 undis- puted electoral votes, and needed only one more for election. Rutherford B. Hayes, the Republican candidate, had only 166. There were nineteen disputed votes in the three southern states and Hayes would have to win all of them if he were to be seated. 1 The three states suddenly became nationally important and both parties sent prominent men, or “visiting statesmen,” to see that their respective party interests were protected. Tempers had been raised to high pitch before the election and with both national parties intriguing to secure the disputed votes, the three South- ern capitals were tense with excitement for several weeks. Activ- ities surrounding the election were closely examined and alleged irregularities were reported extensively by partisan speakers and newspapers. Finally, a national electoral commission was established with authority to rule on the validity of the disputed electoral certificates. Since this commission had a majority of Repub- licans, it decided every case for the Republican candidate. There was considerable Democratic opposition to the decision, but it was finally agreed that Hayes might be seated as President in return for a promise to remove the remaining federal troops from the South. Also, as historians have recently shown, the Southern

1. Paul L. Haworth, The Hayes-Tildes Election (Cleveland, 1906), 51-56. [ 321 ] 322 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY states yielded in the expectation that the Republican-dominated Congress would appropriate substantial funds for internal im- provements. 2 In Florida, the gubernatorial election was held at the same time as the presidential election. The state elected a Democratic governor, ending Republican control of that office through the political process. George F. Drew of Ellaville in Madison County was peacefully inaugurated on January 2, 1877. 3 Although Drew was elected by the Democratic party, many economically influen- tial Republicans were satisfied with him. 4 The effect of this Democratic victory was summed up by an elderly Negro observer of the inauguration who remarked prophetically, “Well, we nig- gers [sic] is done.” 5 For a time during the election campaign it had seemed that violence might break out in Florida. The people were aroused over this election as never before. Scarcely an honest election had been held in the state during the past ten years. Both parties were experienced in assaulting ballot boxes and each was alarmed that the other might “steal” the election. The parties were nearly equal in voting strength and only a few votes could determine the election’s outcome. The Republicans were mostly Negroes with a small number of Northern whites and a few Southerners. Many of the white Republicans were federal or state office holders, but others were engaged in various economic activities. The Democrats, with few exceptions, were white natives or property- holding whites recently arrived from the North. Bitter press attacks and violent, incendiary speeches were delivered by both sides and added to the tense situation created by mutual suspicions of fraud. William Watkins Hicks, state superintendent of public instruction and editor of the Republican Fernandina Observer, and William U. Saunders, a Negro ex- barber from Baltimore, stumped the state for the Republicans, urging the Negroes to get out and vote “early and often.” Other- 2. C. Vann Woodward, Reunion and Reaction: The Compromise of 1877 and the End of Reconstruction (Boston, 1951), passim. 3. New York Times, January 4, 1877; Jacksonville Florida Sun, De- cember 31, 1876. 4. Frank B. Sherwin to William E. Chandler, January 3, 1877, Chan- dler Papers, Library of Congress; Jacksonville Florida Union, Janu- ary 5, 15, 1877. 5. JacksonvilIe Florida Sun, January 4, 1877; Savannah Morning News, January 5, 1877. FRAUD AND INTIMIDATION IN FLORIDA ELECTION 323 wise, Hicks and Saunders warned their Negro audiences, they would be returned to slavery by a Democratic victory. 6 In reply, the Monticello Constitution wrote that the Demo- crats were prepared for any emergency, “and if these Radical hounds want blood, they shall have it.” The Republican Talla- ha ssee Sentinel conceded Democratic superiority in bloodletting, 7 and recommended that Republicans vote even at the risk of their lives. 8 Governor Marcellus L. Stearns warned Negroes that Democratic success would result in war and that all their schools would be abolished because whites did not want to educate them with their tax money. The Floridian insisted that such intimida- ting statements were grounds for indictment. 9 L. G. Dennis, Republican boss of Alachua County, advised Alachua Negroes to carry their guns on election day. 10 In Columbia County where the parties and the races were nearly equal in number, a group of white men accosted some Ne- groes on an isolated road near Lake City and prepared to hang them. After placing a rope around one Negro’s neck they calmly discussed the proper method of hanging. They finally agreed to release him and the others after they promised to withdraw from the local Republican club and actively campaign for the Demo- crats. 11 For the first time since 1868, Columbia County went Democratic in the election. 12 Republican State Senator Robert Meacham of Jefferson County, a mulatto ex-slave, was fired upon about a week before the election by unidentified assailants. The Democrats disclaimed knowledge of this act and offered a reward for the bushwhacker. The Floridian charged that this was “entirely too thin” a subterfuge, claiming that it was only a trick to create evidence of violence which the Radicals were intending to commit on election day. 13

6. Tallahassee Floridian, April 11, October 18, 1876; John Wallace, Carpetbag Rule in Florida: The Inside Workings of the Reconstruc- tion of Civil Government in Florida after the Close of the Civil War (Jacksonville, 1888), 335. 7. Tallahassee Sentinel, July 15, 1876, quoting the Monticello Consti- tution. 8. Ibid., October 28, 1876. 9. Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, November 14, 1876. 10. Ibid., December 5, 1876. 11. Senate Report No. 611, Part 2, 44th Cong., 2nd Sess., 17, 241. 12. Ibid.. 17. 13. Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, October 31, 1876. 324 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

There was also economic intimidation of voters. Here the Democrats had the advantage since they owned most of the land on which the Negroes lived. Also, the merchants on whom Ne- groes depended for advances of provisions were usually Demo- crats. This device was not new in 1876, but the Democrats gave the appearance of having gotten the idea from the Republicans. The Jacksonville, Pensacola, and Mobile Railroad had been recently taken over by the state and its managers were accused of discharging employees for attending Democratic meetings. It was also charged that railroad officials were levying political assess- ments on those employees who wished to keep their jobs. 14 Charles E. Dyke of the Tallahassee Floridian urged property owners to adopt this measure introduced by state authorities. 15 Accordingly, planters and merchants of Jefferson County set up a priority system for renting land and granting credit. First pref- erence would go to those voting Democratic, second to those not voting at all, while those voting Republican would be considered last. 16 The Florida Central Railroad Company handed numbered Democratic ballots to its employees in Nassau and Duval counties and kept a check list of the numbers and the recipients’ names. The employees were told that the ballot must show up on election day or they would be discharged. 17 Excitement increased about two weeks before the election when Malachi Martin, chairman of the Republican state executive committee, announced that he had reliable evidence that Democratic armed bands from Georgia intended to invade Flor- ida on election day. 18 There was, however, no known large-scale plan to use outside force to intimidate Republican Negroes in North Florida counties. Martin may have been misled by hostile editorials appearing in South Georgia newspapers, along with reports from Thomasville that the Thomasville Cornet Band was planning to accompany Benjamin H. Hill, John B. Gordon, and other Georgians to Florida for speaking tours. On one such occasion, in October, the band and four hundred Georgia citizens attended a meeting in Monticello. 19

14. Quitman [Georgia] Reporter, September 14, October 12, 1876. 15. Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, September 19, 1876. 16. Senate Report No. 611, 46. 17. Jacksonville Daily Florida Union, November 14, 1876. 18. Tallahassee Sentinel, October 28, 1876. 19. Thomasville [Georgia] Times, October 28, 1876. FRAUD AND INTIMIDATION IN FLORIDA ELECTION 325

The Democrats denied the existence of any conspiracy to bring in outside assistance. 20 A group called on Republican Gov- ernor Marcellus L. Stearns and made suggestions about obtaining a peaceful election. William D. Bloxham, later governor of the state and a member of this delegation, recalled later: “The Gov- ernor met us in the cabinet room and asked what he could do for us. Colonel [Robert H.] Gamble replied ‘We have come sir, to put you on notice that if a single white man is killed in Leon County on election day, there are 300 of us who have sworn that your life shall pay for it.’ We retired leaving Stearns white as a sheet.” 21 Governor Stearns issued a proclamation on October 31, calling on all citizens to “temper their zeal with discretion.” 22 Inadequate election laws, together with poor transportation facilities and great distances involved, were major causes for much of the agitation. There were numerous ways in which fraud which threatened both parties, could be perpetrated. There was no standard ballot. and the parties issued their own. The only requirement was that all candidates voted for by an elector had to appear on the same ballot. The election laws provided no precinct divisions within the counties. 23 Since an elector could vote anywhere there was abundant opportunity for duplicate voting. Three poll inspectors were to supervise the voting and count the ballots. They were to forward a certificate of the poll returns to a county board. This board, composed of three members, counted the poll returns and forwarded a consolidated certificate to the state canvassing board which counted the returns and declared the final results. 24 At each echelon in the election machinery there was opportunity for fraudulent counting. The law provided that anyone residing in the county one year who had declared his intention of becoming a citizen could register and vote. This created a problem in Key West where many Negro laborers from the Bahamas and Cuban exiles from their revolution-torn homeland were registering for the election.

20. Jacksonville Daily Florida Union, November 2, 1876. 21. Albert Hubbard Roberts, “Florida and Leon County in the Election of 1876,” Tallahassee Historical Society Annual, IV (1939), 90. 22. Appleton’s Annual Cyclopaedia and Register of Important Events, 1867, 42 vols. (New York, 1877), XVI, 296. 23. James Owen Knauss, “The Growth of Florida’s Election Laws,” Florida Historical Quarterly, V (July, 1926), 9-10. 24. Florida Acts and Resolutions, Fifth Session, 1872, 19. 326 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

It was impossible to determine whether the aliens had come to reside permanently and work in the expanding cigar industry. Since their political affiliations were uncertain, Florida political parties were reluctant to oppose registration of these aliens. Sever- al hundred Cubans voted in the presidential election, but apparently votes were cast for both parties. 25 The party controlling the election machinery had a tremendous advantage. When the Republican speakers called on Ne- groes to vote “early and often,” the Democrats were alarmed because it was possible for this to be done. The rumors of armed assistance from out of state alarmed the Republicans because duplicate voting could be prevented if the roads were closely patrolled. One advantage of the incumbent party was its ability to designate polling places. In a public letter to Governor Stearns, State Democratic Executive Committee Chairman Samuel Pasco protested that county commissioners were removing polling places from areas which were heavily Democratic without corresponding reductions in Republican precincts. The result was that whole neighborhoods would either be deprived of their vote or would have to travel as much as fifty miles to a polling place. According to Pasco, this was not accidental but had the mark of policy directed from high authority. 26 Some county officials were apprehensive that consolidation of precincts in the towns would create a violent situation. A Demo- cratic committee urged Governor Stearns to divide the precincts in Tallahassee and other towns according to party. When he failed to issue such an order, Jacksonville Democrats and Republicans agreed on a plan to divide the city’s six precincts according to party. In some Jackson County precincts there were provisions for alternate voting during the day to prevent concentration of antagonistic voters at the polls. 27 False registration was another means whereby public office could be used to thwart the election process. It was alleged that Negroes from Georgia were being registered in the border coun-

25. Key West Key of the Gulf, July 1, 1876; George D. Allen to George E. Lapham, November 27, 1876, Box 13, Tilden Papers, New York Public Library, New York City. 26. Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, November 7, 1876. 27. Jacksonville Daily Florida Union, November 6, 1876. FRAUD AND INTIMIDATION IN FLORIDA ELECTION 327 ties. The Monticello Constitution warned that any caught registering in Jefferson County would be “registered on the criminal docket at the proper time.” 28 Both sides registered minors in several counties. Many of them were challenged at the polls, but others were allowed to cast their ballot. Since many Republican voters could not read, their ballots had an easily identifiable emblem printed across the top. The Democrats saw a golden opportunity in this and printed ballots with a similar emblem and inserted the Democratic slate of candidates below it. These ballots were distributed to Negro voters and several such ballots were cast in Jackson and Columbia counties. 29 In spite of the spirited feelings aroused during the campaign and the many predictions of violence, election day passed in comparative quiet. No armed Georgians appeared in the state. Du- plicate voting in Leon County was surreptitious and limited rather than open. It was not until several days after the election that charges of illegal activities began to be reported. Some of the reports were undoubtedly true, but by that time, Florida had been caught up in the disputed presidential contest and many of these reports were either magnified or were completely false. Although it would be many days before county returns reached the capital, both parties claimed victory almost immediately. Their claims were based on incomplete returns and partisan esti- mates. The Republicans feared that returns from outlying counties might be tampered with on their way to Tallahassee and accordingly sent couriers to the various county seats to obtain dupli- cates of the certificates. A train carrying some of these couriers was wrecked and Governor Stearns announced that it had been “ku-kluxed” by Democrats who wanted to alter the returns before the Republicans reached the county seats. 30

28. Quitman Reporter, July 27, 1876, quoting the Monticello Constitu- tion. 29. William W. Davis, The Civil War and Reconstruction in Florida (New York, 1913), 697, 703. 30. Quitman Reporter, November 9, 1876; Savannah Tribune, Novem- ber 13, 1876; New York Tribune, November 9, 1876; New York Times, November 11, 1876; Edward C. Williamson (ed.), Marcellus L. Stearns, “The Election of 1876 in Florida,” Florida Historical Quarterly, XXXII (July, 1953), 83; Jacksonville Florida Sun, Jan- uary 30, 1877. 328 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

After the train wreck, reports of fraud began appearing in partisan newspapers. The Savannah Tribune, a Negro journal, denounced George H. Davis, a Negro formerly of Savannah, for chartering a train and carrying five hundred Negro men to Jack- sonville. According to the Tribune, Davis forced the Negroes to vote the Democratic ticket. How he carried out this formidable feat, the paper did not say. The precinct returns in Hamilton County were reportedly stolen by Democrats after the election and finally turned in just before the county canvassing board met. A Republican legislative candidate complained that a ballot box was removed from the polls in Monroe County before the ballots were counted. The Democrats were accused of destroying a ballot box in Jackson County and changing a large Republican majority to a majority for the Democrats. When a number of Democrats from Georgia were alleged to have voted in Jackson County, the Tallahassee Floridian said the report came from a man destitute of truth. A group of more than a hundred Democrats, accused of repeating their votes at Cedar Key in Levy County after voting elsewhere, seized the ballot box and kept it until November 13 when the county canvassing board was scheduled to meet. They announced that they were holding the ballot box to prevent Re- publicans from tampering with it. One Democratic railroad man sent a gang of Negro workmen into Alabama and their train “broke down” there until after the election. At Waldo precinct in Alachua County, a train stopped while the passengers got off and cast votes for both parties. 31 The Democratic Jacksonville Press was angry because Negro prisoners were released from jail to vote. Democrats complained that Negro women forcefully prevented Negro Democrats from voting in Jefferson County. An ingenious plan was attempted in Leon by Joseph Bowes, Republican county superintendent of public instruction. He had printed a number of small ballots on thin paper and planned to have voters fold them inside the regu-

31. Savannah Tribune, November 24, 1876; St. Louis Dispatch, No- vember 14, 1876, quoting the New York Times, and November 15, quoting the New York Herald; Jacksonville Daily Florida Union, November 13, 14, 18, 1876, John Friend to John Sherman, No- vember 15, 1876, Sherman Papers, Library of Congress; letter of J. F. McClellan, November 18, 1876, in Tallahassee Weekly Flor- idian, November 21, 1876; New York Times, November 11, 13, 1876; Davis, Civil War and Reconstruction in Florida, 708. FRAUD AND INTIMIDATION IN FLORIDA ELECTION 329 lar ballot. This plan was not carried out, but Bowes, who was also a poll inspector, placed seventy-four of these “little jokers” in a ballot box himself. He was later indicted for this, but not before he had gone to Washington where he obtained employment in the treasury department. The Republicans were accused of alter- ing the returns from Archer precinct in Alachua County by adding 219 names to the registration lists. Green Moore, a poll inspector whose integrity was later impeached, entertained his col- leagues in the store which served as the Archer polling place while Democratic ballots were being replaced by Republican ones in a back room. L. G. Dennis was supposed to have dressed Ne- gro women as men and sent them to the polls in Alachua and Bradford counties. 32 Baker County Judge Elisha Driggers managed to obtain a Republican majority in that county by simply excluding two of the four poll returns which were heavily Democratic. His announced reasons for excluding the returns were that he had heard that a man had been deprived of the right to vote at one polling place and there were rumors that some illegal votes had been cast at the other. 33 He did not say which party had benefited from the alleged votes. When one of the county canvassers refused to accept this interpretation, Driggers obtained the appointment of a new justice of the peace from Governor Stearns. Then, in collaboration with the new appointee and the county sheriff, he completed a return while the county clerk and others sent a return which included the Democratic precincts. The state canvassing board accepted the Driggers version which gave the Re- publicans a majority of forty-three on the state count. There is no way to determine the truth or falsity of the various accusations. There were probably other incidents which were

32. Jacksonville Daily Florida Union, November 9, 11, 1876; New York Tribune, November 11, 1876; Quitman Reporter, November 16, 1876; Nation, XXVI (June, 1877), 408, and XXVII (July, 1878), 9; Senate Report No. 611, Documentary Evidence, 10; House Mis- cellaneous Document No. 31, Part 1, 44th Cong., 2nd Sess., 492-95, passim; Harry Gardner Cutler, History of Florida, Past and Present: Historical and Biographical, 3 vols. (Chicago and New York, 1923), I, 158-59. 33. House Miscellaneous Document No. 35, Part 1, 45th Cong., 3rd Sess., 294-96; Miscellaneous Document No. 143, Part 1, 44th Cong., 2nd Sess., 3-5; Congressional Record, 44th Cong., 2nd Sess., V, Part 2, 1537; Albert M. Gibson, A Political Crime: the History of the Great Fraud (New York, 1885), 67. 330 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

never reported, but these were limited because observers from both sides watched closely at every polling place. The vote in Florida was 24,337 for the lowest Hayes elector to 24,294 for the highest Tilden elector.34 Since Florida’s presidential election was decided by a margin of less than fifty votes, it is impossible to determine whether one or all of these incidents changed the outcome of the presidential election. The state canvassing board was charged with responsibility for counting returns and declaring the results. It performed this function in the midst of extreme partisan pressures. Its members were offered many kinds of bribes and promises of government office. There were two Republicans and one Democrat on this board and evidence is substantial that they all operated in a pure- ly partisan manner, though apparently none of them accepted a bribe. Votes were excluded for various reasons and always the benefit of the doubt went to the Republicans. Most historians agree that the Florida electoral vote rightfully belonged to Samuel J. Tilden rather than Rutherford B. Hayes. 35 However, the state canvassing board’s Republican majority was much more responsible for changing the election’s outcome than any one of the several perpetrators of fraud and intimidation at the county or precinct level. Fraudulent activities in Florida during the election of 1876 were most notable for their mildness. At a time when the political parties and the nation were divided over bitter sectional and racial issues, when other areas such as Louisiana and South Caro- lina were holding bloody elections, when inadequate election machinery invited fraud, and the people of Florida were living under near frontier conditions, most people were at least willing to abide by the forms of the democratic process. In all probability, Samuel J. Tilden should have received Florida’s electoral votes and the presidency, but the nation peacefully accepted the decision which seated his opponent.

34. Senate Report No. 611, Part 2, 17. 35. Woodward, Reunion and Reaction, 20. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS, SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER, 1862 PART II THE FEDERALS CAPTURE ST. JOHNS BLUFF

by EDWIN C. BEARSS

LL OF BRIGADIER GENERAL John M. Brannan’s Union sol- A diers and their arms, horses, and rations had reached shore by 9 p.m., October 1, 1862. Among the first units to land were sixty troopers of the 1st Massachusetts Cavalry. The horsemen spent the afternoon and early evening reconnoitering. General Brannan, on questioning the troopers and several citizens of pro-Union proclivities, learned that the ground between the point of debarkation and St. Johns Bluff presented numerous barriers to the advance of a column of infantry and artillery. These obstacles were all but impassable swamps and several unfordable creeks. Realizing that a march up the south shore of the St. Johns was now out of the question, Brannan examined two alternative routes on the maps. Either he could turn his column inland, moving around the head of Pablo Creek, or he could re-embark his troops and make a second landing farther up the river “at a strongly guarded position of the enemy.” The general preferred the second alternative, because the first called for a forced march of forty miles without artillery and wagons. 1 Brannan decided on a reconnaissance to see if a feasible landing site could be found above the mouth of Pablo Creek. Com- mander Charles Steedman made all the small boats of his squadron available to the army, and Lieutenant Commander Edward P. Williams, executive officer of the Paul Jones, was put in charge of them. Brannan then ordered Lieutenant Colonel Tilghman H. Good, 47th Pennsylvania, to embark a battalion aboard the small craft. Quickly moving his troops to a previously designated point, Good

1. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, 69 vols. (Washington, 1880- 1901), Series I, Vol. XIV, 129. (Cited hereafter as O. R.) [ 331 ] 332 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY reported to Commander Williams. He was delighted to learn that Williams had two boat howitzers manned by marines from the Paul Jones and Cimarron. At a signal from Williams, the launches carrying the soldiers pushed off. They pulled into the mouth of Buckhorn Creek at 2 a.m. Finding the area swampy, Williams moved up the narrow, winding creek hoping to find a better place to put the soldiers ashore. Three-quarters of a mile up was Greenfield Plantation, where there was solid ground. Putting his force ashore, Williams returned to Mayport Mills and reported to Gen- eral Brannan. Orders were issued for officers to form their com- mands. 2 It had rained during the night. Company K, 7th Connecticut, found shelter in a leaky old warehouse “full of cockroaches, sand fleas, and several new species of insect life.” According to one of the soldiers, “the volume of sulphurous language was above par, but nothing new in manner of expression. This was our first time of setting foot in Florida. Hard tack and smoky coffee for grub.” 3 As soon as 2d Battalion, 47th Pennsylvania, could be mustered, fed, and embarked, Williams’ force headed up the St. Johns. It was about an hour after daylight when these troops reached Buckhorn Creek. The boats returned to pick up the 7th Con- necticut. 4 Meanwhile, Brannan had re-embarked the remainder of his force. Convoyed by warships, the transports had ascended the St. Johns to the mouth of Pablo Creek. Anchoring, they awaited the return of Williams’ landing craft. This move would shorten the distance the sailors had to row the small boats, thus enabling the Federals to speed up the operation. * * * News that a stong force of Federals had landed at Mayport Mills quickly reached Colonel Charles F. Hopkins, commanding the Confederate post at St. Johns Bluff, and he promptly for-

2. Ibid., 129, 132; Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, 30 vols. (Washington, 1894- 1922), Series I, Vol. XIII, 363. (Cited hereafter as O. R. N.) 3. Jerome Tourtellotte, A History of Company K Seventh Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War (1910), 46. 4. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 129, 132. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 333 warded the information to General Joseph Finegan. At the same time, orders were sent to Captain Joseph L. Dunham, Battery A, Milton Light Artillery Battalion, to move his entire command from Yellow Bluff to St. Johns Bluff. The dismounted cavalry companies which Hopkins had called for earlier arrived during the night.

Dunham was disturbed by Hopkins’ pre-emptory call for his field artillery. At the moment the teams and caissons were not 334 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

with the guns. Dunham notified Hopkins that because of a shortage of transportation, it would be hours before his battery would be ready to move. Hopkins ordered Dunham to send whatever artillerists he could spare, and he would try to arm them, so they could fight as infantry. 5 About daybreak, October 2, one of Captain William E. Chambers’ troopers galloped up to Hopkins’ command post to an- nounce that the Federals had landed in force at Greenfield. Hop- kins ordered Major Theodore W. Brevard, 2d Florida Battalion of Partisan Rangers, to form his infantry and be prepared to move out. Posting himself at the observation station atop the bluff, Hopkins observed the enemy’s movements. He watched Williams’ boats, crowded with troops, leave the transports and disappear up Buckhorn Creek, and then return an hour or so later. This shuttling operation continued throughout the morning. As soon as he noticed what was happening, Hopkins ordered Captain Chambers to harass the Federals, and, if possible, check their advance. Chambers deployed his men as skirmishers near Parker’s plantation and waited. 6 * * * Acting under orders from General Brannan, Colonel Good assembled his regiment, and as soon as two companies had been deployed as skirmishers, the 47th Pennyslvania started for Park- er’s plantation. The skirmishers found the going difficult as they beat their way through dense underbrush and waded swamps. Some became so exhausted they had to return to the boats. When his force was about a mile from its destination, Good called a halt to wait for the 7th Connecticut. The scouts, Captain Coleman A. G. Keck commanding, pushed on until they were within 1,200 yards of Parker’s house. Ap- prised of this development, Colonel Good joined the skirmish line. A half dozen Confederates could be seen astride their horses about a half mile to the front. Climbing a tall tree, the colonel saw Parker’s house and pinpointed Captain Chambers’ Confeder- ates.

5. Ibid., 139. Hopkins failed to receive an answer to his 3 a.m. message to Dunham. 6. Ibid. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 335

The colonel planned to wait for the 7th Connecticut before trying to dislodge the Confederates. He paced the ground im- patiently as time passed. By 10 o’clock, deciding to go ahead without them, he sent a squad of men to Greenfield to pick up a six-pounder boat howitzer. This gun had been mounted on a flat- boat, but because of the difficulty encountered in dragging it through the swamps, it was noon before the squad returned. Meanwhile, covered by Keck’s skirmishers, the Pennsylvanians closed in on Parker’s. Captain Chambers saw that his company was greatly outnumbered, and after exchanging a few shots, he ordered the plantation abandoned. The 7th Connecticut finally arrived, and at 1 p.m. the Union advance was resumed. Keck’s skirmishers spearheaded the column as it pushed up the right bank of Mount Pleasant Creek. Except for an occasional glimpse of a horseman, the Federals saw no more Confederates until they reached the bridge near the head of the creek at 2 p.m. The Confederates had damaged the bridge, but in less than an hour the Federals repaired it. Crossing the creek, Good moved onto the road leading to Mount Pleasant Landing. A mile advance brought Keck’s skirmishers to a camp. Three men were seen quickly riding off. The Federals discovered many signs of hurried flight, including a large table set with “a sumptious meal.” On the center of the table was a “fine, large meat pie still warm from which one of the party had already served his plate.” Inspecting the twenty- three tents, they also found a small quantity of commissary and quartermaster’s stores. 7 From his command post on St. Johns Bluff, Colonel Hopkins continued to watch the Federals shuttling men and materiel up Buckhorn Creek. Captain Chambers kept the colonel informed of the progress of Good’s column, while Hopkins relayed to Major Brevard the information garnered from his observations. Cham- bers’ scouts, spotting the boat howitzers, mistakenly believed the enemy had landed field artillery, and this news startled Hopkins. About the time the Federals reached Parker’s plantation, Brevard was preparing to use his infantry to try to halt the Union

7. Ibid., 129, 132-133, 139-140; Tourtellotte, History of Company K, 48. 336 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY advance. A message from Chambers, however, revealed the Fed- erals were moving in two columns - one (Good’s) had reached the west side of Mount Pleasant Creek. Brevard was ordered to remain where he was. The next report told of the occupation of Chambers’ camp, which placed the Federals within a few miles of Brevard’s position and in the rear of St. Johns Bluff. Hopkins realized that his position had been turned. There were only a few hours of daylight left when Hopkins ordered Chambers’ troops to retire on Brevard’s battalion. Since the Federals gave no indication of stopping, Hopkins wished to concentrate his force so as to protect the rear of the fortifications. Crews manning six of the ten guns were armed with small-arms, but many of these weapons were defective. Accompanied by Captain Stephens’ troopers, a roadblock was established by the men on the road leading from Mount Pleasant Landing to St. Johns Bluff. About dark, Hopkins was notified that the Federals had halt- ed, and this gave him time to reflect on the situation. In view of the overwhelming force of the Federals, Hopkins decided he could not make a successful stand. Counting the armed artillerists, he had a little over 500 men to hold off the enemy column which had crossed the creek and threatened the batteries from the rear. It had been raining since the previous night and the men’s improvised cartridge-boxes were soaked and their ammunition useless. To make matters more discouraging, reports reaching Hopkins greatly magnified Brannan’s strength. 8 Hopkins decided not to try to hold St. Johns Bluff. Discus- sing the situation with Captain John C. Richard and Lieutenant Thomas O. Stuart, the officers of the batteries, it was agreed that Major Brevard did not have sufficient force to stop the Federal offensive. A courier was sent to inform Brevard of the result of the conference, and to ask for his recommendations. Before the messenger returned, information reached Hopkins that Brevard and his officers had already decided their position was untenable. At 9 p.m. Hopkins ordered St. Johns Bluff abandoned immedi-

8. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 140. Mr. Haynes, a man in whom Hop- kins had great confidence, said the Federals had no less than 3,000 men. Captain Chambers estimated the strength of the Union force MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 337 ately. The Confederates left without even spiking their guns or blowing up the magazines. 9 General Finegan, who had reached Jacksonville late on the 2nd, was enraged when he heard that the Bluff had been evacuated. He telegraphed Richmond the following day, “As at present advised I think we had sufficient force to hold the place, and that its abandonment by Lieutenant-Colonel Hopkins . . . was a gross military blunder, that may require investigation.” 10 In the meantime, Colonel Good’s column, after setting fire to the tents, advanced a mile beyond Chambers’ deserted encampment and occupied a second bivouac. Although Keck’s skirmishers found no Confederates, they made a good haul of arms, ac- couterments, and camp equipage. It was dusk before Good’s regiment reached Mount Pleasant Landing. Outposts were established and manned, and the men were allowed to take a break. 11 Lieutenant James S. Cannon’s detachment of the 1st Connecticut Battery with two guns arrived about 9 p.m. While the Northern infantry had been establishing a beachhead, Cannon’s men had loaded their guns aboard the Neptune. The artillerists carried two days’ rations of raw pork, salt junk, and hardtack. The instructions were to run the vessel up Buck- horn Creek to a predesignated landing place that would be pointed out by a Negro. The captain of the Neptune was drunk, however, and the Negro took over the wheel, but “if the captain was drunk, the Negro was incapable; for he ran the Neptune into a mudbank, where it stuck fast.” It was impossible to wait for high tide, since General Brannan expected the battery to be ashore and ready to march by daybreak.

which established the beachhead at Greenfield at 2,500. During the ensuing four hours, Hopkins kept track of the movements of the small boat armada. Calculating that these boats were capable of moving 300 men per hour, he concluded that by the smallest estimate not less than 1,000 soldiers had landed after Captain Chambers retired from Greenfield. Ibid., 140-141. 9. Ibid., 140-141. 10. Ibid., 138. 11. Ibid., 133. Searching the deserted camp, the Federals found eighteen Hall’s breech-loading carbines, twelve double-barreled shotguns, eight breech-loading Maynard rifles, eleven Enfield rifles, and ninety-six knapsacks. When they moved off, the Federals took these arms with them. Sixteen tents and a small quantity of commissary and quartermaster’s stores were burned. 338 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

A number of small boats were sent to the cannoneers’ rescue, and about 6 a.m. the artillerists landed in “one of those great Florida swamps and marshes, among rattlesnakes, copperheads, centipedes, alligators and many other poisonous reptiles and in- sects.” 12 The Federals were now ready to continue their advance on St. Johns Bluff. Brannan, on the morning of the 3rd, ordered the 47th Penn- sylvania to hold its ground at Mount Pleasant Landing. He wanted to bring up the 7th Connecticut and determine Confederate strength. After questioning his scouts and local people, Brannan estimated the Confederates had 1,200 infantry and cavalry, and nine guns, two of them large columbiads, emplaced on the Bluff. Calling for reinforcements, he dispatched the master of the transport Cosmopolitan with a message to Colonel Rishworth Rich at Fernandina. He also ordered the Patroon to sail with the Cosmo- politan. 13 Shortly before noon, lookouts aboard the gunboats were won- dering if something were amiss. They had been watching the bluff for hours and had noted little if any movement; the Con- federates had not even hoisted their flag. Information reaching Brannan indicated the enemy might be evacuating and so he and Steedman ordered a “special reconnaissance.” The E. B. Hale and the Uncas were sent upriver, with orders to proceed with caution. 14 The warships first opened fire on the St. Johns Bluff earthworks, but there was no answer or any sign of life. Then Lieutenant Snell of the Hale ordered a gig to move into shore. There the Federals found that the Confederates had fled, leaving behind guns, ammunition, provisions, and camp equipage. After raising the American flag, the sailors returned to their ship. 15 When he saw the flag, Steedman ordered the Paul Jones and the E. B. Hale to move upstream to Jacksonville. The Water Witch was to land a party to hold the fortifications on the bluff pending the arrival of the army. 16

12. Ibid.; Herbert W. Beecher, History of the First Light Battery Con- necticut Volunteers, 1861-1865, 200-201. 13. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 128, 130; O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 355, 373. 14. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 130; O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 363. 15. O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 357, 363, 370. The guns abandoned by the Confederates included two 8-inch columbiads, two 32- pounder rifles, and four 8-inch siege howitzers. 16. Ibid., 363; Harper’s Weekly, October 25, 1862. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 339

When the Paul Jones and the Hale reached Jacksonville at 7 p.m., Steedman learned that he was too late to halt the retreat of Hopkins’ command. The Confederates had crossed the river several hours before. Steedman was also told that the 29th and 30th Georgia were scheduled to reach Jacksonville the next morning, October 4. Actually though news of the evacuation had caused the Georgians to turn back. Hoping that not all the Confederates had escaped, Steedman had the Hale drop downstream to guard the Panama Creek ferry while the Paul Jones remained at Jackson- ville. 17 As soon as he discovered that the Confederates had evacuated their works, General Brannan ordered his men to push ahead. Covered by a strong force of skirmishers, the Federals marched from Mount Pleasant Landing, taking the road paralleling the St. Johns. 18 “I witnessed a sight which was interesting,” a cannoneer recalled, “the naval fleet moving up the river and the land forces commencing their march. After a few shots were sent into the fort and no reply was made, up went Old Glory amid the huzzas of the land force and the blowing of whistles of the gunboats and transports. The enemy had got scared, as our bungling and loading and unloading so many nights had led them to believe that the whole Union army was coming.” 19 Occasional clashes occurred during the advance between the Union scouts and roving Confederate patrols. About two miles from the bluff, the left wing of Colonel Good’s skirmish line came upon an abandoned encampment. Since it was starting to get dark, the Federals did not stop. Brannan’s soldiers reached St. Johns Bluff at 7:30, relieving the sailors from the Water Witch. Two companies from the 47th Pennsylvania were sent to examine the camp, where they found trunks and camp equipage scattered about. Papers in one tent identified the late occupants

17. O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 363, 370. The 29th and 30th Georgia which were hurriedly pulled out of the Savannah defenses had reached Lake City by rail. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 616-617. 18. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 130, 133-134. 19. Beecher, History of the 1st Connecticut Battery, 202-203. 340 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY of the camp as members of the Milton Artillery. 20 A foraging party of Confederates, not knowing that the battery had been abandoned, came in soon after the Federals occupied the bluff and surrendered. 21 The Federals had been warned not to “venture” into the swamp between the landing and the bluff. The cook from 1st Connecticut Battery selected a mess spot “near a large palmetto jungle” which he thought was safe. “I well remember,” one of the gunners reported, “just as the fire was burning nicely, out crawled a huge rattlesnake from the palmetto grove. The heat of the fire had roused him from his lethargic sleep and the aromatic fragrance of the coffee was too much for him. Everyone who saw the reptile had a shot at him with pistols, making him sur- render very quickly. He measured nine feet in length and had ten rattles.” 22 Fatigue parties were organized and put to work dismounting the heavy ordnance and clearing up “a scrub patch on the bluff” to make camp. 23 The soldiers considered their effort wasted, however, since they spent the night “fighting sand fleas and mos- quitos.” General Brannan was impressed with the captured position. It was his opinion that a small party of determined men could have maintained this position for considerable time against even a larger force than was at his disposal. 24 The Cosmopolitan returned from Fernandina with 300 soldiers. Since there was now no need for reinforcements, Brannan

20. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 130, 133-134. At Camp Hopkins the Federals also found a small quantity of commissary stores-sugar, rice, half a barrel of flour, and one bag of salt, which they removed to St. Johns Bluff on the 4th. Ibid., 134. 21. Tourtellotte, History of Company K, 48. 22. Beecher, History of the 1st Connecticut Battery, 201. 23. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 130. Describing the works in his “After Action Report,” Brannan observed, “I found the late position of the enemy on St. Johns’ Bluff to be one of great strength, and possessing a heavy and effective armament, with a good supply of ammunition, . . . the works being most skillfully and carefully constructed and the position greatly enhanced by the natural advantages of the ground, it being approachable from the land by but one route, which would lead the attacking party through a winding ravine immediately under the guns of the position, and from the narrowness of the channel at this point and the elevation of the bluff rendering the fighting of the gunboats most difficult and dangerous.” 24. O. R., Series, I, Vol. XIV, 130; Tourtellotte, History of Company K, 49. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 341 ordered them to return to their base. After dropping the soldiers at Fernandina, the Cosmopolitan was to continue to Hilton Head with dispatches for General Mitchel and Admiral Du Pont, including a request of Commander Steedman for a light-draft coal vessel and additional ammunition for his big 100-pounder Par- rotts. 25

On the morning of October 4, small boat parties from the Paul Jones and the E. B. Hale were ordered to destroy all the skiffs and flatboats on the reach of the St. Johns between Jack- sonville and Panama Creek. Such drastic action, Steedman rea- soned, would keep the Confederates from shifting men and materiel from one side of the river to the other. About noon, Steedman took the Paul Jones and returned to Mayport Mills. The E. B. Hale at the same time was ordered to make a sweep up the St. Johns to Mandarin Ferry. Steedman informed General Brannan that he had seen many cornfields on his run up the river. The general, an exponent of economic warfare, immediately proposed to carry off or destroy the corn. Other action against the East Florida Confederates was planned. It was decided to send a fast moving task force up the St. Johns. The Cimarron and the Water Witch would proceed to Jackson- ville, and together with the Hale would ascend the St. Johns as far beyond Palatka as possible “for the purpose of destroying all the boats and flats on the river, to prevent the enemy crossing.” 26 Because of a defective steering mechanism, the sailors had trouble getting the Cimarron up river. Severely buffeted by the currents, the gunboat anchored five times. According to Com- mander Woodhull, “we literally made the passage going stern first.” It was 9 p.m. when the Cimarron and the Water Witch arrived at Jacksonville, and joined the Hale which had returned from Mandarin Ferry. 27

25. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 128; O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 355, 357. The Cosmopolitan could tow the coaler on her reutrn to the St. Johns. 26. O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 363, 370; O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 128. 27. O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 367, 370. During the day the small boat parties from the E. B. Hale had destroyed nine boats and one scow. Ibid., 370. 342 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

On the morning of October 5, the Water Witch, with Com- mander Woodhull aboard, and the Hale, started up the St. Johns. Frequent stops were made during the day and landing parties were put ashore. A great number of small boats and barges were destroyed, and at Magnolia Springs, as well as at several other points, Woodhull had copies of Lincoln’s September 22 Emancipation Proclamation posted. The two gunboats spent the night anchored off Madison’s Point, about five miles below Orange Mills. Thinking it unsafe to take the Water Witch (which drew 1 11 /2 feet) over the bar, Woodhull transferred to the E. B. Hale and proceeded on to Palatka, reaching there at 10 a.m. As the gunboat approached Palatka only two people were visible, all others having fled. On anchoring, Woodhull sent a boat ashore to pick up the two men, one of whom was William D. Moseley, former governor of Florida, who said that recent Confederate reverses in Maryland and the capture of St. Johns Bluff had greatly alarmed the people of East Florida. 28 Woodhull, having seen only three white men since leaving Jacksonville, wondered where they all were. 29 Moseley told him that they “had all fled to the bush, as a report had been circulated by the flying troops from Fort St. John that it was the purpose of . . . [the] ‘vandals’ to seize every white man and either execute him at once or send him to a Northern prison.” Woodhull also learned that about fifty Confederate cavalry- men from St. Johns Bluff and twelve mules had crossed the river at Palatka after abandoning their wagons at Deep Creek. He urged Moseley, when he returned to shore, to ask the people “to return to the town, and . . . to inform them that . . . they had been deceived by their own people; that it was not . . . [the Fed- erals’] purpose to molest unarmed men and that the future existence of their town would depend on their own peaceful conduct.” 30

28. Ibid., 367-368, 370. On September 16 and 17, General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia fought the Battle of Antietam. Al- though Lee escaped defeat, his losses were so great that he was com- pelled to abandon his position and retire across the Potomac into Virginia. 29. Ibid., 368. Besides Moseley and his companion, a white man was seen at Magnolia. 30. Ibid. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 343

The man with Governor Moseley identified himself as Mr. Blood, a Northerner. When he expressed fear of “being seized and made to ornament a pine tree for his well-known Union views and attachment to the United States Government,” Wood- hull ordered an armed party to bring Blood’s family and property aboard the gunboat. The party had been gone about fifteen minutes when Wood- hull saw about forty or fifty armed horsemen riding toward the area where Blood’s house was located. He immediately ordered the boats recalled and the anchor weighed. “General Quarters” sounded, and the ship’s guns began firing over the town, toward the oncoming horsemen. At first, the Confederates pressed on, hoping to reach the cover afforded by nearby houses, but they were not successful. After three or four men had been unhorsed, the rest gave up and retired into the bush. The landing party returned and succeeded in moving Blood’s family to the gunboat. About thirty Negroes who had helped pilot the Union ship up the St. Johns were also brought off, together with their families. 31 Meanwhile, a deputation of women assembled on the wharf, and one of them, Mrs. Boyd, informed Commander Woodhull that “the men had fled to the swamps; that a part of the disor- ganized cavalry were in the neighborhood; that they were un- controllable, and she begged . . . [Woodhull], as they were unable to help themselves or prevent violence of the men, not to shell the town.” Woodhull did not agree that the women had no influence with the men, “It was a well-known fact that this war had been mainly kept alive by the violence and the influence of the women brought to bear on their fathers, husbands, and sons.” He did promise, however, that “if the force back of the town was immediately removed, and the quiet citizens left undisturbed . . . [he] would not then shell the town.” Otherwise, his men would open fire in two hours. Mrs. Boyd had anticipated Woodhull, and had already sent a message to the commander of the partisans, asking him to evacuate the locality. Shortly afterwards the partisans moved out, Mrs. Boyd informed Woodhull, who pretended to believe it was

31. Ibid. 344 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY her “influence that had sent those gentlemen to the right about, but at the same time did not change . . . [his] belief in the com- pelling power of our shells.” 32 That afternoon the two gunboats returned to Orange Mills, where Woodhull and the Blood family transferred to the Water Witch, and the following morning they sailed to Jacksonville. The E. B. Hale returned to Palatka. 33 * ** In the meantime, General Brannan and his staff aboard the Paul Jones and two infantry battalions on the Ben De Ford moved up the St. Johns on the morning of October 5. 34 It was about 2 p.m. when the vessels reached Jacksonville. As soon as the soldiers landed, Brannan, leaving a reserve at the dock, moved his troops into town. As the troops were pressing forward toward the outskirts, suddenly there was a rattle of musketry. The captain of the reserve force left at dockside hurriedly ordered his men into formation, and about that time Brannan and his “gold-laced Staff” came pounding down the street, “their coat-tails elevated and extremely careless of following precedence in rank.” The reserves, Company K, 7th Connecticut, moved off on the double toward the scene of the firing. Turning up the railroad track, the Federals joined their comrades, who were deployed in line of battle. The clash was with a small mounted Confed- erate detachment that was encamped just outside Jacksonville. As soon as Company K arrived, the column pressed on, pushing up the main street. In the face of this advance, the Confeder- ates pulled back. When a naval lieutenant arrived with a boat howitzer and some sailors, the reinforced Federals marched on to a road junction about a mile outside town, where they established a perimeter covering the approaches to the city. 35

32. Ibid., 369. 33. Ibid., 370. Following his return to Jacksonville, Commander Wood- hull made out his report and handed it to Commander Steedman. He reported he found the corn crop average, and in his opinion it should suffice to take care of the Floridians’ normal consumption. Woodhull was also an early advocate of economic warfare. He thought the greatest blow which the Federals could administer to the Southern economy would be to destroy the sugar crop and the small salt works along the coast and rivers of eastern Florida. Ibid., 369. 34. Ibid., 363; O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 130-131. 35. Tourtellotte, History of Company K, 49-50. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 345

On the morning of October 6 a transport with additional companies of the 7th Connecticut came up river. To keep the men off the streets, the provost marshal ordered them to remain aboard ship. This was unwelcomed news, because the men of Companies A and K reported that the town was a pleasant place with many pretty girls. 36 The provost guards fell down on their responsibility. There was plundering of private property, with the sailors the worst offenders: “Their wide-collared, capacious sailor shirts were crammed with plunder, their leather belts preventing any slip- ping down below the waist line.” 37 * * * An “intelligent contraband,” formerly a pilot aboard the Con- federate steamer Governor Milton, asked (on the morning of Oc- tober 6) to see Commander Steedman and General Brannan. He informed them that an expedition sent up the St. Johns could capture the Governor Milton and other vessels which the Con- federates had hidden. Commander Williams was ordered to place two 24-pounder howitzers from the Paul Jones on the steamer Darlington. As soon as Acting Master Charles G. Loring and twenty-four sailors from the flagship and Captain Charles H. Yard and 100 sailors from the 47th Pennsylvania came aboard, the Darlington started up the St. Johns. 38 Passing the Water Witch north of Orange Mills, she reached Palatka where she rendezvoused with the E. B. Hale. Before resuming her run up the river at 8 a.m., October 7, a fatigue party from the Darlington was put ashore to gather wood. Afterwards the two gunboats left Palatka, and at noon they tied up at Welaka. The water at the entrance to Lake George was too shallow for the Hale to pass, so Williams ordered Lieutenant Snell to remain behind with his gunboat and blockade the mouth of Ocklawaha River. The Darlington moved on through Lake George to Volusia where a landing party went ashore to question the inhabitants. A ferryman, brought aboard the Darlington, re-

36. Ibid., 52. 37. Ibid. 38. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 131; O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 364, 366. 346 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY ported that several steamers had recently passed Volusia, and Williams ordered the chase continued. At Hawkinsville, where the Darlington arrived after dark, Williams put a detachment ashore. Although they searched the houses, the Federals were unable to find any inhabitants. Unmis- takeable signs, fires and turned down beds, indicative of a hurried departure, were plentiful. Letters were found which led Williams to believe that the Governor Milton was hidden in a nearby creek. Fearing that the townspeople might have sent a party to burn the vessel, Williams ran the Darlington up the creek as far as the pilot could take her. The ship’s small boat carrying sixteen men and two officers was lowered. Towing a small canoe with six soldiers, the boat started up the creek. With- in a half mile, the Federals caught sight of the Governor Milton moored to the bank. She was boarded without incident, and the engineers guarding her meekly surrendered. The fires were stoked and within fifteen minutes of her capture Williams had the prize underway. They returned to the St. Johns, but Williams saw that the Governor Milton could not keep up. He ordered it anchored in mid-channel to await the Darlington’s return. People at Lake Beresford reported a steamer had passed the previous afternoon. Reasoning that the vessel had already reached Enterprise, Williams thought it would take his men a day or two to find her. Rations were running short, and the commander was afraid the Southerners might block the river behind him by felling trees in the channel. Consequently, he decided not to press on. 39 Early on the 8th the Darlington, followed by her prize, started down the St. Johns. Stopping at Hawkinsville and Volu- sia, landing parties were put ashore to appropriate supplies and destroy property. The E. B. Hale was encountered at Welaka, and Mr. Allen and his effects were transferred from that vessel to the Darlington. Escorted by the Hale, Williams’ expedition continued down river, and tied up at Jacksonville at daybreak, October 9. 40 Commander Steedman was delighted to see the Governor Milton, and he asked General Brannan to leave it be-

39. O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 366-367. 40. Ibid., 367. Allen had collaborated with the Federals and wanted to leave the area to escape the vengeance of his neighbors. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 347 hind when the army returned to Port Royal. He planned to arm the prize and use her to search out Confederate salt works. 41 * * * The Cosmopolitan, which had been sent to Port Royal for supplies, returned to the St. Johns on October 7. In crossing the bar, she grounded, knocking a hole in her bottom. Repairs would have to be made before the vessel could go to sea again. With the Cosmopolitan out of action, Brannan, seeing that the army’s work on the St. Johns was completed, decided to shuttle his command back to its base. Orders were issued for Colonel Joseph R. Hawley, 7th Connecticut, to embark his regiment aboard the steamer Boston. Before the regiment left Jacksonville, Quartermaster Sergeant Edgar M. Woodford died of malaria and was buried in the yard of the Episcopal Church on the outskirts of town. Since there was some fear that Woodford might have also had yellow fever, Brannan ordered the embarkation expedited. He also wanted the Boston to be returned as soon as possible to assist in trans- porting the remainder of the brigade to Beaufort. 42 The Boston crossed the bar early on the 8th. The sea was rough and many of the soldiers became seasick. There were a number of contrabands on board, including “some very pretty quadroon girls who had been house servants in Jacksonville.” The Boston reached Port Royal at 11 p.m., but the health officers, because of the yellow fever scare, would not let the steamer tie up at the pier until 10 o’clock the next morning. 43 Upon the return of the Darlington on the 9th, Brannan pulled the rest of his soldiers out of Jacksonville, utilizing the Ben De Ford and Darlington to transport the troops to St. Johns Bluff. At the bluff, Colonel Good and his fatigue parties placed all the captured heavy ordnance aboard the Neptune, demolished the earthworks, and prepared the magazines to be blown up. On October 11, Brannan sent Cannon’s section of the 1st Connecti- cut Battery and one company of the 47th Pennsylvania aboard the Darlington and the vessel sailed for Hilton Head by way of

41. Ibid., 358-359; O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 131. 42. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 131, 386-387; Tourtellotte, History of Company K, 52. 43. Tourtellotte, History of Company K, 53. 348 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

Fernandina. After exploding the magazines, Brannan loaded the remainder of his troops, except one company of the 47th Penn- sylvania, on the Ben De Ford and the Boston. The detached company remained behind to guard the damaged Cosmopolitan. On the 13th, the crowded transports steamed past Hilton Head. 44 * * * When the army left Jacksonville, Steedman divided his squadron. Commander Woodhull with the Cimarron, Water Witch, and E. B. Hale remained at Jacksonville, while the remaining vessels patrolled the river between Jacksonville and Mayport. Early on the 10th, the Hale was sent on another sweep up the St. Johns. The little gunboat stopped at Forresters Point where she destroyed two scows and several small boats, and at Orange Mills she burned a large mill owned by Dr. Mays. When she returned to Jacksonville the Hale carried thirty-nine contrabands and towed two large scows and several smaller craft. 45 The Uncas was anchored off Yellow Bluff on the evening of the 10th, when the watch reported lights on shore. Studying the lights, Acting Master Crane was convinced the Confederates were “doing something to cause an interruption of the river.” As soon as it was light, Crane reported what he had observed to Com- mander Woodhull, who wondered if the Confederates planned to reoccupy Yellow Bluff and mount guns in the emplacements there. His landing parties had secured information recently which reinforced his fears. According to reports, a Confederate force was operating on the St. Augustine road and General Fine- gan still had enough guns to emplace an impregnable battery. Moreover, the Cimarron was running short of coal, and provisions and ammunition were getting low. Thus lightened, she was almost unmanageable. Should big guns be mounted on Yel- low Bluff, Woodhull believed his position would be precarious. He accordingly dispatched a message to Commander Steed- man, urging that forces be put ashore at Yellow Bluff to level earthworks, burn houses, and fell the nearby timber. This dispatch was carried by Commander Pendergrast of the Water Witch, who was to scrutinize the shore as he passed the bluff. If he saw anything suspicious, he would have his gunners fire. 46

44. O. R., Series I, Vol. XIV, 131. 45. O. R. N., Series I, Vol. XIII, 361, 364, 370. 46. Ibid., 360-361. MILITARY OPERATIONS ON THE ST. JOHNS 349

Meanwhile, the Uncas returned to her station off Yellow Bluff. Not seeing anything out of the ordinary, Pendergrast held his fire as the Water Witch dropped down the St. Johns. Steed- man, on learning the Cimarron was short of coal, ordered the Uncas to carry fuel to Woodhull. He wanted to use the Patroon, but her crew had become “so demoralized and insubordinate as to render her totally inefficient,” and she was returned to Port Royal. 47 Believing that the Confederate threat on the St. Johns had been nullified, Captain Sylvanus W. Godon, temporary commander of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, decided to cut his commitments in the area. There were several reasons for this decision. First, with the capture and destruction of fortifications on the St. Johns, it would be possible for vessels assigned to blockade the river to operate inside the bar. Sweeps could be made up the St. Johns at frequent intervals to harass planters and keep the Confederates from mounting additional guns on the bluffs. Second, warships would be required to support an action in South Carolina which was planned for the near future. On October 16, Commander Steedman was ordered to return to Port Royal with his flagship and the Uncas and Water Witch. Woodhull would remain with the Cimarron, the E. B. Hale, and the Governor Milton to enforce the blockade. The next morning Steedman crossed the bar and started on his run up the coast. 48 The days immediately following the departure of Steedman were not uneventful. The Cimarron took position off Mayport Mills, while the E. B. Hale and the Governor Milton patrolled the river to a point above Yellow Bluff. On October 20, fifty marines from the Cimarron came aboard the Governor Milton

47. Ibid., 359-360, 380. On doing so, Steedman sent along a note stating that he did not believe Acting Master Urann was “to blame for the disreputable condition of affairs on board of his vessel.” Charges and specifications prepared by Urann against four members of the Patroon’s crew (Walter Harrington, William Williams, William McIntyre, and James Waltzingford) were also forwarded to the admiral. 48. Ibid., 393. The Uncas carried a number of contrabands who were to be put ashore at Fernandina. As soon as the Negroes were landed, the Uncas was to “proceed with all dispatch to Port Royal.” The hole in the Cosmopolitan’s hull having been repaired, she also sailed at this time. 350 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY and they proceeded up Sisters Creek to Cedar Point. There the marines discovered and destroyed a large salt works. By night- fall, the vessel was back on the St. Johns. Satisfied with destruction of the salt manufactory, Woodhull wanted reinforcements so as to expand his operations and patrol the river as far as Lake Beresford. 49 The gunboat Seneca arrived off the bar on October 21 with dispatches for Woodhull, denying his requests for additional vessels. In fact, his command was being reduced. The Governor Milton was to proceed immediately to Port Royal for appraisal by a prize court. 50 Naturally, Woodhull was disappointed. Several times during the past week mounted partisans had been sighted, although the Confederates had kept well beyond the range of the Cimarron’s guns. If he were allowed to keep the Governor Milton, Wood- hull wrote Captain Godon that he wanted to send her up the small tributary streams to check on the strength of these patrols and destroy them if possible. 51 This dispatch was given to the master of the Neptune. But because of other commitments the navy was unable to listen to Commander Woodhull’s plea.

49. Ibid., 398. 50. Ibid., 406. The 24-pounders were transferred to the Cimarron, while fuel and provisions to last for a week were placed aboard the Governor Milton. For protection on her run up the coast, the crew of the prize steamer would rely on one of the Cimarron’s 12-pounder boat howitzers. 51. Ibid., 406-407. The Neptune had reached the St. Johns on the 21st. Woodhull turned out working parties to load the steamer with lum- ber and a number of other “valuable articles” which had fallen into the Federals’ hands at Mayport Mills. WAKULLA SPRING: ITS SETTING AND LITERARY VISITORS

by LOU RICH

AKULLA SPRING, situated on the coastal lowlands about midway between Apalachee Bay and Tallahassee, has a surrounding area comprised mostly of woodlands of cypress, live- oak, magnolia, and pine. The spring itself is semi-circular with a diameter of 400 feet, and it covers an area of approximately five acres. It is 103 feet deep and has an average flow of 283 cubic feet per seoond. The water is moderately hard and typical of most Florida springs. 1 “It is the fountainhead of a river, . . . [and] wells up in the very heart of a dense cypress swamp . . . ,” according to Charles Lanman’s description in his Adventures in the Wilds of the Unit- ed States and the British Provinces written in 1856. 2 Lanman was referring to the spring as the source of the Wakulla River, which joins the St. Marks River and flows into the Gulf of Mexico’s Apalachee Bay. The original Indian name for the spring was “Tah-ille-ya-aha- n,” meaning “where the water flows upward like the rays of heav- enly light out of the shadow of the hill.” 3 Through the years the pronunciation of this word was altered, and by the nineteenth century it had become Wakulla, meaning mystery, a description which a writer in 1855 felt was “a conception as chaste as correct.” 4 The first explorer to visit the region was Panfilo de Narvaez in 1523. He was followed by Hernando de Soto in 1539. De

G. E. Ferguson, C. W. Lingham, S. K. Love, and R. O. Vernon, Springs of Florida, Florida Geological Survey, Geological Bulletin 31 (Tallahassee, 1947), 169-171. The spring has been variously spelled as Wakhula, Wachullah, Wacully, Waccolla, Wakully, Wa- culla, and Wahkula. Charles Lanman, Adventures in the Wilds of the United States and the British Provinces, 2 vols. (Philadelphia, 1856), II, 143. Frank Drew, “Florida Place-Names of Indian Origin,” Florida His- torical Quarterly, VI (April, 1928), 204. E. S. Gaillard, “Medical Topography of Florida,” No. II, Charleston Medical Journal and Review, reprinted in De Bow’s Review, XIX (November, 1855), 539-557. [ 351 ] 352 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

Soto and his men discovered St. Marks Bay and set up winter quarters in the area near Tallahassee at Anhayea in November, 1539. 5 The theory that Ponce de Leon saw the spring, thus giving rise to the legend of the “Fountain of Youth,” has some sup- porters, but there is no historical evidence to substantiate this belief. Soldiers and traders likely came into the area but no permanent settlements were made until the Spanish missionaries arrived in the 1630’s. During and prior to this time the Apalachee Indians lived in this area. One of the Muskhogean tribes, the Apalachees inha- bited the region from Pensacola east to the Ocilla River, and were most numerous in the Tallahassee-St. Marks sections. In 1655 it is estimated that there were between six and eight thousand, but by the eighteenth century they had been reduced to less than fifteen hundred by repeated raids by the Creeks and British. The Apalachee Indians were finally forced to merge with the Creeks. 6 The Forbes Purchase contained about two million acres of land east of the Apalachicola. This vast tract was purchased from the Indians by John Forbes and Company with the consent of the Spanish government. 7 It included land in present-day Franklin, Liberty, Gadsden, Leon, and Wakulla counties. When the United States acquired the Florida Territory in 1821, there was the question whether the trustees of John Forbes retained title to the land, but the United States Supreme Court ruled in their favor in 1835. 8 The Apalachicola Land Company was organized in November, 1835, to sell this acreage. 9 Wakulla County was created out of Franklin, Gadsden, and Jefferson counties in March, 1843, and it became part of Florida’s ante-bellum cotton kingdom. 10

5. John S. C. Abbott, Ferdinand De Soto (New York, 1898), 203; Final Report of the United States De Soto Expedition Commission (Wash- ington, 1939), 159-165. 6. F. W. Hodge and T. H. Lewis (eds.), Spanish Explorers in the Southern United States 1528-1543 (New York, 1907), 21. 7. Caroline Mays Brevard, A History of Florida From the Treaty of 1763 to Our Own Times, 2 vols. (De Land, 1924), I, 58-59. 8. Decree of confirmation by U.S. Supreme Court, October term, 1835, reported in 9 Peters, 711-741. 9. Deed Rook E, Leon County Records, November 28, 1835, 100-104. 10. Acts and Resolutions of the Legislative Council of the Territory of Florida, 1843, 29-30. The act declared, “That the district or county included within the following boundaries to wit: Beginning at the WAKULLA SPRING 353

Wakulla Spring was known locally as a natural curiosity and was the site of outings and picnics. As settlers moved in and access to the area became easier, the spring was visited by a number of travelers. In 1850, George S. King, a Philadelphia naturalist, and his assistant, G. L. Brockanbrough of Wakulla County, discovered the bones of a giant mastodon in the spring. According to the Tallahassee Florida Sentinel, the bones were on the northeast side of the spring, scattered over an area thirty by eighty feet and at a depth of from thirty to almost fifty feet in two places. Lying on sand, their outlines and shape were almost perfectly retained. There was no sign of petrification, and their texture and general formation could be seen distinctly. 11 The principal part of each hip bone, a part of one blade bone, and other bones had been discovered. The piece that they attempted to raise weighed approximately 150 pounds, and the tusk was estimated at about 300 pounds. 12 After making his discovery, King announced the following theory as to how the spring was created: That mighty beast . . . was doubtless walking leisurely along one, to him, unlucky day, and just at that spot, when all of a sudden, the ground gave way beneath him, and into the deep they went, trees, earth, beast and all, and the beast being unable to extricate himself from the sad predicament into which his bad luck had plunged him, did in this way lose life. It is in this way too . . . that the appearance of the Wakulla Spring is to be accounted for. 13 The discovery of mastodon bones and the ensuing publicity increased the number of visitors to the spring, but it did not become an important attraction at the time. Florida lay outside the general overland travel routes through the South. Most Euro- pean visitors and native observers, even such notable itinerants

Gulf, thence north on the range line between range two and three, until it intersects the north boundary of section twenty-four, township two, range two, south and east; thence due west on that line until it strikes the Ocklockonee, river; thence down the river, until it strikes the Gulf; and thence along the line of the Gulf, to the point of com- mencement, (including islands), shall constitute a county, to be called the county of Wakulla.” 11. Tallahassee Florida Sentinel, June 18, 1850. 12. Jacksonville News, July 6, 1850. 13. Tallahassee Florida Sentinel, June 18, 1850. 354 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY as Frederic Law Olmstead, never came to Florida. Those who did visit the state, however, usually went to Tallahassee, and from there it was relatively easy to take the Tallahassee-St. Marks railroad to the spring’s vicinity. After the Civil War the flow of visitors was greatly accelerated. Recorded accounts of visits to Wakulla Spring date back to 1823 with the description from the journal of John Lee Williams, who was examining sites for the location of Florida’s capital: “The spring is a beautiful oval basin of almost unfathomable depth. It presents to the eye a pale azure translucent surface, under which are seen myriads of fish in little companies, at times sporting in the flood, and again disappearing behind the cliffs of rock which project into the fountain.” 14 Williams described the spring in a report to Richard Keith Call: . . . [I] surveyed the Wakully to its source, which is a grand spring pouring forth at once a navigable River, which will carry six feet of water to its source, full of the finest fish, but also full of grass, which obstructs the navigation . . . . There is a fine, high hammock on the west side of the Spring . . . 15 In 1829 the Tallahassee Floridian and Advocate made it the subject of an editorial:

The wide spreading and majestic oaks that hang over its abyss of waters-the innumerable flowering shrubs and para- sitical plants peculiar to this climate, with which they are interwoven, give this enchanted spot an air of grandeur and beauty, that can only be conceived by one, who has floated on its waveless surface in an immeasureable height, while gazing upon the magic scene reflected from its bosom. Such is the transparency of the water, that it is sometime before a person feels at ease - he clings to his frail bark as his only hold on the earth. 16 Well-known travelers like Charles J. LaTrobe, the English writer who traveled extensively with Washington Irving, were also impressed with the spring. “The source of the Waculla,” he wrote in 1835, “forms a large circular basin of great diameter,

14. “Journal of John Lee Williams,” Florida Historical Quarterly, I (April, 1908), 44. 15. Brevard, A History of Florida, I, 263. 16. Tallahassee Floridian and Advocate, September, 1829. WAKULLA SPRING 355 in which the water appears boiling up from a fathomless abyss, as colourless as the air itself. No bottom has been found with a line of two hundred fathoms.” He added, “The stream, which runs off to the southward, admits of being navigated by boats from the very fountain; and the myriads of fish which frequent these pools, and evidently swarm among their subterraneous channels, are not their least remarkable feature.” 17 Another traveler in 1835 wrote that “the greatest natural beauty . . . the greatest curiosity of the whole South, is the source of the Wahkula. . . . This lovely sheet of water is 120 yards in diameter - so still, and of such perfect transparency, that the smallest object is seen at the immense depth of water below; and the spectator upon its surface, sits and shudders as if suspended in empty air.” 18 Wakulla Spring, according to John Lee Williams in his Ter- ritory of Florida, published in 1837:

. . . . “is of unknown depth and perfectly transparent. In looking into it, the color resembles a clear blue sky, except near the border, where it has a slight tinge of green from the reflection of the surrounding verdure, which hangs over it in drooping branches and waving festoons. The eastern side presents a rugged rocky precipice, all else is an abyss of boundless depth. . . . The beauty of the fountain, the luxuri- ance of the foliage around it, and the calm retirement of the whole scene, render this one of the most charming spots that West Florida affords.” 19 The St. Augustine News in September, 1841, reprinted this sketch of the Wakulla from the Knickerbocker, the New York magazine:

Our first sensations, when we shot out from the reeds and bushes which skirt the margin, were those of great diz- ziness. The water is so pure and clear, that we felt suspended in the air, and clung to the boat very much as we may suppose an aeronaut finds himself clinging when in his sublimest flights. The air above you is scarcely more transparent than the water below; the thin shadows of the cloud are thrown a

17. Charles J. LaTrobe, The Rambler in North America, 2 vols. (New York, 1835), II, 47. 18. Letters on Florida (New York, 1836), 15. 19. John Lee Williams, The Territory of Florida (New York, 1837), 147. 356 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

hundred feet below you, and spread out at the bottom of the spring; and the image of your boat is carried down with perfect fidelity, and with its oars and rudder looks like some huge animal crawling with outstretched legs along the ground. The modest fishes have no sort of privacy; and what is worse for them though better for the fishermen, they have no safety. You can watch the hook as it sinks, and can accurately place the tempting bait within an inch of the abstracted and innocent nose. 20 The French traveler, Francis Comte de Castelnau, visited Wakulla Spring during his American tour in 1842, and published his observations in a book entitled Vues et Souvenirs De L’Ameri- que Du Nord. The Frenchman and his party left St. Marks and ascended the Wakulla River in canoes. Progress was slow because of fallen trees and high grasses growing at the river’s edge. Castelnau was impressed by the forests that lined the winding banks and the presence of alligators, pelicans, snowy white egrets, and other long-legged birds he could not identify. When they reached the spring itself Castelnau felt that the area had about it a sublime tranquility. He drank of the spring’s water and pro- nounced it very pleasant tasting. 21 By 1843 there was a fairly steady stream of visitors to the area. In that year P. Randall, a Wakulla County resident, made the first real attempt to turn the spring into a commercial venture. He announced his plans in the Tallahassee Star of Florida: “Since the country has been cleared of the Indians, these springs have attracted much attention from strangers visiting this section of the country.” 22 This bit of information was comforting because, as Castelnau pointed out, between 1837 and 1840 several families who had settled along the Wakulla were massacred by the Seminoles. 23 Randall offered the use of a new boat to view “this interesting spectacle.” He had also cut out a new road from his house to the spring, which shortened the distance and was more pleasant. In addition, he offered to provide the visitors with meals and lodging

20. St. Augustine News, September 17, 1841. 21. Francis Comte de Castelnau, Vues et Souvenirs De L’Amerique Du Nord (Paris, 1842), 146-147. 22. Tallahassee Star of Florida, May 25, 1843. 23. Casteluau, Vues et Souvenirs, 147. WAKULLA SPRING 357 at his house, feed for their horses, and to do whatever else he could to make their visit pleasant and agreeable. “His charges,” he added, “will be moderate.” 24 No records reveal how long Randall maintained his venture or how profitable it was. Mary Bates, a writer for The Opal, a magazine published in New York in the 1840’s, visited Wakulla Spring in February, 1845. Carried away by the spring and her own prose, The Opal’s correspondent wrote: After leaving Tallahassee we soon entered the piny woods. Their monotony broken only by the pathway of sand which lay before us, white as snow. As we approached the spring the woods were diversified. . . . And this unique, crystal- like, well-like spring hides itself in a wild wood swamp; in the midst of this chaos, Nature has carved out a marble basin, and from a fountain deep and invisible its silver waters well up. . . . The magnificent basin was skirted with water lillies, ‘Niad’s lovliest wreath’; and scarcely had the oars shaken off their broad green leaves, when our bateau floated on water a hundred feet in depth. . . . The water was as transparent as air, and yet it seemed air consolidated, for like a prism it separated the rays of light, and gave us from the lowest depths the richest hues. . . . and lying in those bright, pure depths, there seemed caverns formed of pearl and emerald. Fit palace for Nep- tune. . . . Or here might be Titan’s hut or a Mermaid’s grot, or a Naiad’s home, or here the heroic maiden might shelter her out-lawed knight in ‘coral caves’ and ‘sparry bowers,’ like Neuha, daughter of the Southern seas, and beautiful as night, who hid her Tonquil, safe from the reckless crew, beneath the ocean’s surges and the sea-birds’ nest, in a palace of stalactites, ‘whose only portal was the keyless wave.’ . . .Farewell Wachulla, not again may these eyes greet you, but with many a cherished scene will your image be treasured. Thy wild wood swamp, thy eagles’ eyrie, thy lily- girt basin, thy aerial waters, thy sparkling grottoes, like a gleam from fairy land, will cheer and embellish a weary moment or a lonely hour. 25 Writing in the Charleston Medical Journal in 1855, E. S. Gaillard gave his view of the spring. He said, “Wakulla spring

24. Tallahassee Star of Florida, May 25, 1843. 25. Mary Bates, “Wachulla Springs,” in The Opal: A Pure Gift for the Holydays (New York, 1847), 22-24. 358 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

. . . is certainly the largest and most wonderful spring in the State. The stream ejected is able to bear a boat on its surface, immediately below the fountain. It is difficult to reach the spot by navigation, as the water is clogged with flags, rushes, weeds, etc.; this mode is, however, considered best, as conducing to give the most pleasing and wonderful view of the spring. Suddenly the immense mass breaks upon the eye, a circular lake in size and appearance, with waters as clear as crystal. The depth of this spring is incredible and almost inconceivable, . . .” Gaillard then described vertigo, a sensation common to most of the spring’s visitors: “Whilst gazing upon this wonderful creation of nature and attempting to analyze the unfathomable depths below, one beholds the clear and perfect reflection of heaven’s concave, with clouds flitting across its field, as it were a transient breath upon the surface of a faithful mirror. Many who visit this spring are thus disagreeably affected, feeling as though suspended between two atmospheres; the feeling is one of giddiness, which disappears on approaching the margins, where trees and shrubs usurp the place of clouds and sky.’’ 26 In 1859 the Fernandina East Floridian took note of a travel- ler who had visited the spring: “Taking a narrow path we crossed through some dense underwood, and all at once, stood on the banks of the Wakulla Spring. . . . The thick bushes were growing almost to the water’s edge, and bowing their heads to the unrippled surface.” Continuing, the journalist noted, “I think the water possesses a magnifying power. . . . We rowed toward the north side, and suddenly we perceived in the water fish, which were darting hither and thither, and long flexible roots, luxuriant grass on the bottom all arrayed in the most beautiful prismatic hues. The gentle swell occasioned by the boat gave to the whole an undulating motion. Death-like stillness reigned around and a more fairy scene I never beheld.’’ 27 On the eve of the Civil War, “Batchelor,” a correspondent of the Charleston Daily Courier made a tour of Florida, visiting Jacksonville, Lake City, Madison, and Tallahassee. A highlight of his tour was a visit to Wakulla Spring. “Here a large stream of water bursts up in clear limpid bubbles, and edging around,

26. Gaillard, “Medical Topography of Florida,” 539-557. 27. Fernandina East Floridian, October 6, 1859. WAKULLA SPRING 359 finally passes off forming the Wakulla River. Nothing astonishes the visitor more than the wonderful transparency of these streams. Dropping a dime into the Wakulla is the customary tax upon the hidden mysteries. The little coin twirls about as it descends, and down, down, into the unfathomable it continues to go - yet for seconds you watch its descent through the crystal fluid. Ours, we suppose, [must] have gone to China, for we never saw it stop.’’ 28 The stream of visitors declined during the Civil War, but interest in Wakulla Spring revived after 1865. Daniel G. Brinton in A Guide-Book of Florida and the South in 1869 included a description of the spring. “The water is cool, impregnated with lime, and of marvellous clearness,” he observed. 29 Sidney Lanier called the site “one of the most wonderful springs in the world.” He wrote, “you can plainly see a sort of ‘trouble in the ground as the water bursts up from its mysterious channel, one feels more than ever that sensation of depth itself wrought into a substantial embodiment. . . .’’ 30 Eunice White Beecher, wife of Henry Ward Beecher, in her book Letters From Florida, quoted an account from a correspondent of the New York Evening Post: As we approached the center, I noticed a jagged, grayish limestone rock beneath us, pierced with holes; through these holes one seemed to look into unfathomable depths. . . . We hung trembling over the edge of the sunken cliff, and far below it lies a dark, yawning unfathomable abyss. From its gorge comes pouring forth, with immense velocity, a living river. 31 Ellen Call Long, the well-known Tallahassee authoress of Florida Breezes and daughter of Territorial Governor Richard Keith Call, recalled a trip to the spring: Our route for several miles stretched through a barrier of heaven-reaching pines; then a hammock district. There was no torrent or jet, . . . but a glassy, unruffled surface of water . . . and nothing from the first view to indicate

28. Charleston Daily Courier, April 3, 1861. 29. Daniel G. Brinton, A Guide-Book of Florida and the South for Tour- ists, Invalids, and Emigrants (Philadelphia, 1869), 8. 30. Sidney Lanier, Florida, Its Scenery, Climate, and History (Philadel- phia, 1875), 115. 31. Mrs. H. W. Beecher, Letters From Florida (New York, 1879), 81-82. 360 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

clouds, azure sky and the deep verdure of surrounding trees of cypress, entwined with jessamine and honey-suckle, which hung trailing, lost in other vines and briars, and all veiled with the Spanish moss, before the fabled virtues of this phys- ical Lethe, whose waters reposed as if in mosaic tapestry, making a scene of enchantment, inviting rest and dreamy enjoyment. . . . the spring . . . at its border looked like opals, pearls, and emeralds, dissolved and diluted in diamond water. . . . The moss-covered stones, jutting irregularly from four to more than a hundred feet below, where they centre around a fathomless depth; the flexible roots and grasses all bathed in rainbow hues; the numerous fish, eels, and even alligators, sporting in their element, reflecting the same prismatic color- ing, together with the gentle dreamy gliding over the depths of aquerous transparency, and its kaleidoscopic changes, accompanied by the music of the many throated wood songsters, make it a fairy scene, in which for the time we lose all sense of the earth. . . . 32 A. A. Robinson, author of a promotional book on Florida, concurred with Mrs. Long when he said, “Certainly no natural object can be more beautiful than the appearance of this great fountain, on a clear day, when no wind disturbs the face of its waters.’’ 33 George M. Barbour included a description of the spring in his Florida For Tourists, Invalids, and Settlers, published in 1882, calling it “another local lion,” lying in a “flat, uninter- esting pine-wooded region, near several cultivated cotton plantations.” He told of a rude landing and an old Negro who rowed visitors out on the smooth surface of the spring. The sides of the spring were almost perpendicular and were composed of solid, smooth rock, Barbour found, and “the water is so marvelously blue that indigo would look pale in comparison with it, and so clear that small gravel and bits of tin 1 inch square could all be seen plainly on the bottom. . . . While the water is blue, the rocks are intensely brilliant green, over which occasional phos- phorescent flashes of shimmering light play fitfully, producing a weird and phantasmal effect.” 34

32. Ellen Call Long, Florida Breezes: or, Florida, New and Old (Jack- sonville, 1883), 284-287. 33. A. A. Robinson, Florida: Pamphlet Descriptive of its History, Top- ography, Climate, Soil, Resources, and Natural Advantages (Talla- hassee, 1882), 55. 34. George M. Barbour, Florida For Tourists, Invalids, and Settlers (New York, 1882), 83-84. WAKULLA SPRING 361

Abbie M. Brooks, alias Silvia Sunshine, in Petals Plucked From Sunny Climes, described the trip she took in 1883 from Tallahassee to St. Marks on the train and the subsequent carriage ride from there to Wakulla: “We can feast our eyes with its pearly hues and changing, shimmering waters, dancing in the sun- light. . . . The water is blue limestone, but it looks green from reflection, and very cold, said to produce a numbing effect upon those who try bathing in its transparent depths.” 35 In 1885 the Tallahassee Weekly Floridian published a collection of letters called “His Letters From Tallahassee” concerning life in the “Big Bend” area. One described a writer’s reaction to his first glimpse of Wakulla: “The spring simply surpasses anything the imagination can picture from the most vivid description, and bears about the same relation to all other springs I have dreamed of, that Niagara does to a canal lock or a beaver dam. . . . Wakulla Spring is credited with being the identical well of rejuvenating waters that brave old De Leon rambled about in search of. It is sincerely to be hoped, . . . that if the gallant cavalier did stumble on it in his wandering, he had with him in the breast pocket of his duster, a tickler of aqua dient to mox with his draught. To my prosy and unimaginative senses, a thim- ble full of the veritable ‘critter’ possesses more rejuvenescence than a barrel of these limpid waters.” 36 In 1889 the writer James W. Davidson claimed that Wakulla Spring was one of the most wonderful things of its kind in the world. 37 Clifton Johnson, author of travel books, agreed in his Highways and Byways of Florida that the spring was indeed re-

35. Abbie M. Brooks (Silvia Sunshine), Petals Plucked From Sunny Climes (Nashville, 1883), 347-348. The author added to her description of Wakulla Springs by quoting an unknown writer: “This charming nympheum is the product of primitive nature, not to be imitated, much less equaled, by the united effort of human power and ingenuity. As we approach it by water the mind of the inquiring traveler is previously entertained, and gradually led on to a greater discovery-first by a view of the sublime dark grove, lifted up on a shore by a range or curved chain of hills at a short distance from the lively green verge of the river on the east banks, as we gently descend floating fields of the nymphae in limbo, with vistas of the live-oak, which cover a bay or cove of the river opposite the circular wood- land hills.” 36. Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, December 10, 1885. 37. James Wood Davidson, The Florida of Today: A Guide for Tourists and Settlers (New York, 1889), 101. 362 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY markable, sending “off a full-grown river . . . from its single out- burst.” 38 Senator Harry B. Hawes of Missouri, vice-chairman of the Senate committee on conservation of wildlife resources, visited Florida in the early 1930’s to study laws and conditions surrounding the state’s wildlife and fish. After seeing the spring for the first time, the senator said, “Wakulla Spring may some day belong to the government, and be developed as the eighth wonder of the world.” According to the Tallahassee Democrat the Senator declared that the natural beauty immediately surrounding the great spring and the scenic wonders found in the spring bowl, the crystal clear water, the marine life, and the enormous size of the flow, said to be the largest in the world, entirely justified official rec- ognition on the part of the national government. 39 Thomas Barbour in That Vanishing Eden, A Naturalist’s Florida commented on the spring’s “sense of timelessness and mystery” and the “bewildering variety of aquatic vegetation.” He described his trip there as a “unique experience.” 40 Knud Clauson-Kaas, a Dane who toured America in 1948, included Wakulla Spring on his itinerary. He found the spring beautiful and pictures of it were included in his book, Vi Ruller Gennem Amerika. Clauson-Kaas described at some length the area’s wildlife. 41 The spring’s appeal, rather than decreasing, has increased in the twentieth century and present-day visitors are no less impressed with its beauty than were those of former years.

38. Clifton Johnson, Highways and Byways of Florida (New York, 1918), 117. For a similar description, see John T. Faris, Seeing The Sunny South (Philadelphia, 1921), 174. 39. Tallahassee Daily Democrat, April 16, 1931. 40. Thomas Barbour, That Vanishing Eden, A Naturalist’s Florida (Bos- ton, 1944), 116-117. 41. Knud Clauson-Kaas, Vi Ruller Gennem Amerika (Copenhagen, 1948), 156-157. JONATHAN C. GIBBS: FLORIDA’S ONLY NEGRO CABINET MEMBER

by JOE M. RICHARDSON

ISTORIANS HAVE CONTENDED that during the period of Reconstruction when the Republican party dominated the political stage in Florida, the state was controlled by incompetent, illiterate, and venal Negroes. A critical examination of primary sources, however, shows that this is not a valid conception. Ne- gro office holders were always in a decided minority and among those who held office on the state and local level there were many capable men. The best example of a Florida Negro who disproves the stereotyped freedman politician is Jonathan C. Gibbs, one of the best educated and most cultured persons holding a political office. 1 Gibbs was born in Philadelphia about 1827, of free parents. After his father, Jonathan C. Gibbs, a Methodist minister, died in 1831, he was apprenticed to learn the carpenter’s trade, which he followed until he was an adult. In the meantime, he had joined the Presbyterian Church, and, in 1848, at the age of twenty- one, entered Dartmouth College with the assistance of the Presby- terian Assembly. 2 At Dartmouth, Gibbs studied Latin, Greek, mathematics, rhetoric, morals, and natural philosophy. 3 Gradu- ating in 1852, he studied for two years at the Princeton Theolog- ical Seminary, and then became a pastor, first of a church in Troy, New York, and then of one in Philadelphia. 4 Shortly after the Civil War, Gibbs was sent to North Carolina as a Presbyterian missionary. He opened a school for freedmen, and ministered to their religious needs. 5 In late 1867, he was

1. William Watson Davis, The Civil War and Reconstruction in Florida (New York, 1913), 494. 2. Mifflin Winter Gibbs, Shadow and Light: An Autobiography (Wash- ington, 1902), 111. 3. Letters from D. P. Hanna, assistant in the Archives Department, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire. 4. House Report, 42nd Cong., 2nd Sess., No. 22, pt. 13, 223; New York Tribune, February 10, 1868. 5. Ibid., W. E. B. Du Bois, Black Reconstruction: An Essay Toward a History of the Part Which Black Folk Played in the Attempt to Re- construct Democracy in America, 1860-1880 (Philadelphia, 1935), 643, 655. [ 363 ] 364 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY transferred to Florida. When the freedmen were enfranchised, Gibbs decided that there was an “obvious necessity for ability in secular” as well as in religious matters. 6 Gibbs was elected as a delegate to the Florida Constitutional Convention which met in Tallahassee, January, 1868. When the Convention convened, the Republicans who were in control immediately displayed an obvious division between the conservatives, sometimes called the “Johnson Party,” and the more radical Re- publicans, who were in sympathy with the ideas of Thaddeus Stevens. Gibbs was aligned with the latter faction, although his speeches were usually temperate. He was the outstanding Negro member of the Convention, and many thinking Floridians agreed with the New York Tribune correspondent who said there is “no fitter man” present, “white or black.” Gibbs was described at this time as being of medium size, with “a good intelligent yellow African face.” He was “active in body and intellect, well educated, and an orator by nature, not a roarer but a convincing, argumentative, pleasant speaker: in this respect the most talented man in the Convention.” 7 During the Convention, Gibbs preached one Sunday night in Tallahassee. “I have never heard a better address in my life,” a Northern correspondent wrote, “than I did last evening from the Rev. Mr. Gibbs, at the African Church.” Another white listener became almost ecstatic, saying, “O that all the old masters in the South could have heard him this day.” 8 Gibbs was “a good example” of what education would make of his race, a Jacksonville paper stated, adding that he was a man of “pleasing and courteous address.” 9 He was probably the best educated man in the Convention, a convention which, according to agriculturist Solon Robinson, compared favorably with any past legislative body of any southern state or with any new state in the country. 10 Despite his adherence to the radical faction of the party, Gibbs was independent, even opposing his cohorts on occasion. His goal was a constitution

6. Gibbs, op. cit., 111. 7. New York Tribune, February 5, 10, 1868; Tallahassee Sentinel, February 20, 1868. 8. Ibid. 9. Jacksonville Florida Union, November 14, 1868. 10. New York Tribune, February 5, 1868. FLORIDA'S ONLY NEGRO CABINET MEMBER 365 which would protect both the rights of Negroes and of property in the state. 11 Gibbs apparently made an excellent impression at the Con- vention upon the Republican party leadership. In 1868, Harri- son Reed, Florida’s first Republican governor, presented his name to the Senate for appointment as secretary of state. The name was incorrectly presented as John, and Reed withdrew it. For some reason it was not resubmitted. 12 Later that same year Gibbs was appointed secretary of state after the incumbent, George J. Alden, a native white Unionist, joined the governor’s enemies in an attempt to impeach him. The elevation of Gibbs to the cabinet was an obvious attempt by Reed to strengthen his position with the freedmen, who believed the governor was neg- lecting their interests. 13 As secretary of state, Gibbs was a trust- ed public servant, and worked closely with Reed and the other state officials, some of whom were former Confederate army officers. He sometimes served as acting governor during Reed’s absences. 14 He was Reed’s right-hand man, and apparently was respected by other cabinet officers. Even bitter Democratic opponents commended Gibbs for his fairness and honesty. In 1873, the Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, the most important Democratic paper in the state, complained that the legislature has passed “a legal advertisement law” for the purpose of subsidizing Republican newspapers. But under Gibbs, the editor pointed out, “The harsh operations of the law were ‘considerably mollified’ by the designation of a number of Democratic journals as ‘official papers’.” 15 None of his white associates were able to shield Gibbs from the hatred of the Ku Klux Klan, however, which opposed all Ne- gro politicians regardless of their ability and standing. Further- more, as secretary of state, Gibbs was active in trying to ferret out and punish members of these lawless organizations. His brother, Mifflin W. Gibbs, an attorney in Little Rock, Arkansas, visited

11. John Wallace, Carpetbag Rule in Florida: The Inside Workings of the Reconstruction of Civil Government in Florida after the Close of the Civil War (Jacksonville, 1888), 55. 12. Florida Senate Journal, 1868, 84. 13. Wallace, op. cit., 90-91; New York Tribune, February 8, 1868. 14. See Minutes of the Board of Commissioners of Public Institutions, October 26, 1868-February 13, 1892, February 27, March 2, 23, May 1, 1871, in Florida State Library, Tallahassee, Florida. 15. Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, March 4, 1873. 366 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY him while he was secretary of state, and found him in a “well- appointed residence,” but sleeping in the attic where he kept “considerable of an arsenal.” Gibbs said he had slept in the attic for several months for protection since the Ku Klux Klan had threatened his life. 16 When Governor Reed was succeeded in January, 1873, by Ossian B. Hart, Gibbs was appointed state superintendent of public instruction. According to a Negro contemporary, Negro Republicans threatened to desert the party unless a member of their race received a cabinet appointment. 17 Since Gibbs was the ablest Negro in the state, he was invited to join the new gover- nor’s administration. As superintendent, Gibbs was also president of the board of trustees of the agricultural college that Flor- ida planned to establish with the proceeds realized from the sale of lands secured under the Morrill Land Act. Extant records show that Gibbs was deeply interested in de- veloping public education on every level, for both whites and Negroes in Florida. Insisting on full and accurate reports from his county superintendents, he inspected these documents carefully. He had moderate success in securing adoption of uniform texts in elementary and secondary schools. Previously each student had used any book he could secure. In 1873 the state published a series of textbooks under Gibbs’ direction. This was the first time a course of study of any kind had been developed by Florida. 18 The public school system in Florida experienced rapid growth under Gibbs’ leadership, although he was often discour- aged that he was not able to move forward even more rapidly. A visitor to Florida, who described Gibbs as “a gentleman of considerable culture and capacity,” quoted him as saying that his efforts were often thwarted by other politicians, many of whom opposed integrated schools. 19 There was considerable opposition by

16. Gibbs, op. cit., 112. 17. Wallace, op. cit., 268. 18. “School Report of Florida, 1869-1894,” Office of State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tallahassee, Florida; Boyce F. Ezell, The Devel- opment of Secondary Education in Florida With Special Reference to the Public White High School (DeLand, 1932), 36-37. 19. Edward King, The Southern States of North America: A Record of Journeys in Louisiana, Texas, the Indian Territory, Missouri, Ar- kansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Mary- land (London, 1875), 420. FLORIDA'S ONLY NEGRO CABINET MEMBER 367 whites to Negro education throughout the South, 20 but this was only one of many problems facing public education. Florida’s small population was widely scattered, money was scarce, com- petent teachers were difficult to secure, especially for Negro schools, and many Floridians could not yet see the efficacy of tax- supported education. Superintendent Gibbs was not completely pessimistic about the situation, however. In a speech before the National Educa- tion Association at Elmira, New York, in August, 1873, he admitted the shortcomings and problems of public education in Flor- ida, but graphically demonstrated its improvement and growth since the Civil War. 21 In 1872-1873, Florida had 18,000 pupils in school at a cost of $101,820. The next year, 1873-1874, enrollment and expenditures increased to 21,196 and $139,870.60 respectively. In 1874-1875 enrollment climbed to 32,371 with total receipts from school taxes amounting to $188,952. 22 There was a relatively large number of Negroes enrolled in the public schools, and visitors commented favorably on their rapid progress. In some counties there were more Negroes than whites attending school. 23 Gibbs’ address to the National Education Association received flattering notices from the Elmira newspapers. A New York paper noted that a Negro from the South “had delivered with the dignity of an educated gentleman” a speech that in “breadth of thought and liberality of sentiment” marked the speaker as a “worthy son” of Dartmouth College. 24 Gibbs died suddenly on August 14, 1874. He was only forty-seven years old. S. B. McLin who succeeded Gibbs as superintendent of public instruction wrote that Gibbs’ death “must be regarded as an event of more than ordinary importance, especially when viewed in connection with the educational interests of the State. . . . Negroes have lost one of their noblest representatives, our State one of its most valued citizens, and our public school system one of its most intelligent advocates and one of its best friends.” 25 Enjoying good health, he had delivered a “pow-

20. The Florida Agriculturist, March 7, 1874, I, 79. 21. Copy of speech in “School Reports of Florida, 1869-1894.” 22. Ibid.; U. S. Commissioner of Education, Report for the Year 1874 (Washington, 1875), 61, 532-33; Report for the Year 1875, 65. 23. “School Reports of Florida, 1869-1894.” 24. The Florida Agriculturist, January 17, 1874, I, 20. 25. “School Reports of Florida, 1869-1844.” 368 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY erful speech” at a Republican meeting in Tallahassee just a few hours before he died. His brother said he died of apoplexy in his office shortly after the meeting. 26 Nonetheless, it was ru- mored and many believed that he had been poisoned. The death of one of the state’s most illustrious Negroes was regretted by both white and Negro Floridians. The conservative Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, which rarely wrote anything fa- vorable about a Republican, editorialized: “He was probably the best informed colored man in the State, and would in this respect have stood in the front ranks of his race anywhere.” 27 The Jack- sonville Tri-Weekly Union believed it no injustice to the living to say that “in all the elements that go to make up what is termed a good citizen and a capable and honest public servant, he leaves few superiors.” 28 Gibbs was in many ways “a leading representative of his race,” the Jacksonville New South attested, “and in the State, owing to his education and gentlemanly bearing, he had no superior.” 29 The minister-educator-politician was a man of intelligence, integrity, and dedication, and in his time, one of the outstanding men in Florida.

26. Du Bois, op. cit., 521; Gibbs, op. cit., 112. 27. Tallahassee Weekly Floridian, August 25, 1874. 28. Jacksonville Tri-Weekly Union, August 18, 1874. 29. Jacksonville New South, August 19, 1874. BOOK REVIEWS

Florida During the Civil War. By John E. Johns. (Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1963. ix, 265 pp. Illustrations, bibliography, index. $6.00.) This volume is the first comprehensive study of Florida in the Civil War since William Watson Davis’ The Civil War and Re- construction in Florida, which was published in 1913. It is appropriate, therefore, that its publication should have been sponsored by the Florida Civil War Centennial Committee. And it is doubly welcome because Davis’ book has long been out of print and because Dr. Johns has been able to draw upon material, primary and secondary, unavailable a half century ago. The narrative falls roughly into three parts-secession and military affairs to 1863; the domestic scene, economic, social, and political; and military affairs from 1863 to the end. The discussions of such matters as secession, seizure of the forts, the Fort Pickens truce, Governor Milton’s relations with the Confed- eracy, the occuption of the east coast towns, and the Olustee campaign traverse familiar ground. The chapters on domestic affairs, to which more than half the text is devoted, constitute, both literally and figuratively, the heart of the book. Dr. Johns evidently grasped every shred of material illustra- tive of daily life, and it is surprising how much he found. His chapters on planter and slave and the home front are the most interesting in the book and will appeal especially to the general reader. His treatments of state politics, finances, and the break- down of local government are also good. Particularly enlighten- ing is the discussion of Governor Milton’s successful fight against the radical element for control of the administrative machinery of the state. There are omissions. The reader will look in vain for a sys- tematic account of the blockade in Florida waters, for any notice of the operation of the Federal Direct Tax Commission in East Florida, or for the stories of such minor military actions as the Battle of Gainesville and the West Florida raids. Exclusion of such matters was no doubt dictated by considerations of space. A more serious shortcoming consists of inaccuracies due ap- [ 369 ] 370 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

parently to an uncritical acceptance of secondary accounts, to unfamiliarity with contemporary names, and to carelessness. Madison S. Perry was not, and had not been, a trustee of the internal improvement fund in 1856 (p. 4), and Harrison Reed, of course, was never provisional governor of Florida (p. 200). McQueen McIntosh was a Confederate, not a state, appointee (p. 155). Federal losses at New Smyrna were eight killed and seven wounded-not 42 killed (p. 73). The legislature did not establish a system of circuit courts in 1861 (p. 78), but merely transferred cases in federal courts to existing state courts. Errors in spelling are numerous: “Vallandingham” for “Val- landigham” (p. 48); “Juda” for “Judah” (p. 50); “Brosenham” for “Brosnaham” (p. 60); “Gailbraith” for “Galbraith” (pp. 87, 92, 96); “J. S. G. Baker” for “J. L. G. Baker” and “Lowe” for “Love” (p. 210); “Pauleston” for “Puleston” (p. 172); and “Boker” for “Baker” (p. 218, 219). “Henry” (p. 197) is incorrectly indexed as “Hendry.” Similarly, A. B. Noyes is mentioned as “Albert B.” in the text (p. 138) and as “Alonzo B.” in the bibliography (p. 246). It is too bad that an otherwise creditable and credible book should be marred by such errors. They will force the scholar to use with caution a work which is too important for him to ignore. They will not, fortunately, affect the general reader, whose enjoyment and edification they will in no wise diminish.

DOROTHY DODD Florida State Library

Lore of the Wreckers. By Birse Shepard. (Boston: Beacon Press, 1961. viii, 278 pp. Foreword, illustrations, bibliography, notes, index. $5.95.) Since man first put out to sea in a craft of his own design he has placed his life in jeopardy. Since he first launched ships laden with cargo he has risked both life and property. From the very beginning some men have waited on land ready to comb the beaches for such treasures as wind and wave might wrest from troubled ships and toss ashore. But there were also mariners who stood by with their own ships, scanning the treacherous BOOK REVIEWS 371 waters, ready to help rescue distressed ships. These were the wreckers, men who made a living from rescue and salvage operations and who, by the very nature of their work, rendered themselves both heroic and suspect. It is of the wreckers that Miss Shepard has written. They are her own special brand of heroes, and in her account they come off very well indeed, although she has not hesitated to label some as scoundrels. Like any other segment of men constantly challenged by danger, the wreckers exhibited the very best and the very worst of human traits. With the discovery of America the pace of maritime commerce quickened. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries hundreds of vessels made their way across the ocean following sea-lanes which often skirted perilous waters. Scores of treasure- bearing ships broke up at sea or ran aground near Sable Island off Nova Scotia, Cape Cod, the Long Island area, and the Dia- mond Shoals of North Carolina. The Florida Straits, bounded on the south and east by the Bahamas and Cuba and on the north and west by the Florida Keys, were particularly treacherous. The Florida reefs took a heavy toll of the ships that sailed to and from the ports of the Gulf of Mexico, Central America, and the Spanish Main. And here wrecking flourished to a degree un- equalled elsewhere. The famous Brilanders established a lucrative wrecking business on Harbour Island in the Bahamas in the eighteenth century. In the 1820’s, with the transfer of Florida to the United States, the wrecking center shifted to the Florida Keys, with Key West its capital. It is with this area that some of the soundest and best-documented portions of Miss Shepard’s book deal. Al- though she has slighted no part of the wrecking scene, Key West looms particularly important in her scheme. Wrecking was the life of Key West throughout the nineteenth century. When the Key West Wrecking Register was officially closed in 1921, its pages bore the names of some of America’s most prosperous entre- preneurs, many persons of cultivation and high intelligence. Wil- liam Curry, when he died in 1896, was one of the richest men in Florida. He had built his fortunate on wrecking. This book has obviously been a labor of great love. Miss Shep- ard has exhumed much material from remote and romantic 372 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY places. She confesses to having spent many “happy days on the keys and cays, browsing in libraries and museums, and poking around the edges of the sea, listening to tales of the olden days.” It is written with charm and good humor. She has released her- self from the rigid demands of documented history by designat- ing her work as only “a lighthearted approximation of it [history], offered with clean hands and a frank warning that much of it can never be verified.” Disarming as this admission may be, it should not be assumed that this book has no historical word. It must be given a place among the important books written about wrecking. E. ASHBY HAMMOND University of Florida

I Take This Land. By Richard Powell. (New York: Scribners, 1962. 437 pp. $5.95.) Mr. Powell’s novel opens aboard a wood-burning Baldwin 10 Wheeler railroad locomotive in South Georgia in 1895. It moves swiftly to Tampa, and from Tampa to the town of “Fort Taylor,” which, as Mr. Powell explains in an “Author’s Note,” bears a close and deliberate resemblence to Fort Myers. The country between Fort Myers and Lake Okeechobee is the setting for most of the story. The period is from 1895 to 1946, and the historical theme is the development of a frontier village into a modern city. The goals of the historical novelist differ from those of the academic historian. The academic historian might spend half a lifetime trying to determine whether Ponce de Leon landed in Florida in 1512 or 1513, and consider the time well spent if he came up with a definite answer. To the historical novelist the difference between 1512 and 1513 is not particularly important; he would much rather know whether or not it was raining, or if there was a high surf when Juan Ponce went ashore. The purpose of the historical novelist is to create a visual picture, and in this way help his reader relive some specific era. If there is nothing known about the weather, then the novelist feels free to create his own. On the other hand, he must never (if he takes his work seriously) be demonstrably wrong. BOOK REVIEWS 373

He can create his own weather only when the real weather is not known, and what he creates must fit in with those facts that are known. This means that the historical novelist must do a tremendous amount of research, and not only on one phase of his subject, as the academic historian may limit himself. In I Take This Land Mr. Powell deals at some length with railroads and railroad building in South Florida, with citrus and the development of the citrus industry, the cattle industry, the business of egret hunt- ing, and, of course, the daily life of his people. On all these subjects it was necessary to acquire a vast amount of major and minor information. For example: the exact cost of oranges in 1896, the amount of fruit produced per acre, the cost of egret plumes, the usual width of an ox-drawn wagon. If he has made any errors I did not catch them, and I carefully checked a number of items. On the other hand it may annoy the precise historian that Powell has deliberately taken some liberties with history. He brings his railroad into Fort Taylor eight years before a railroad actually reached Fort Myers, and he moves Julia Tuttle’s railroad-snaring orange blossom from the east coast to the west. But in his “Author’s Note” he makes these facts clear, and the changes do not alter the accuracy of the broad picture. All in all, the average reader, the non-professional historian, may quite possibly learn more about life in South Florida in the first half of this century from Mr. Powell’s novel, than he would from a half dozen books of straight history. And it also tells a good story. WYATT BLASSINGAME Anna Maria, Florida

Ninety Years of Service 1873-1963: The Story of St. Luke's Hos- pital, Jacksonville, Florida (Jacksonville: 1963. vi, 170 pp. Preface, illustrations.) Ninety years are but a second in history as we know it, but in the development of St. Luke’s Hospital it represents the period of its birth in a tiny frame structure to a large metropolitan hospital. Although Jacksonville’s temperate climate had encouraged 374 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY many infirm and elderly people to move there, 1873 was a year of adversity. The financial panics which were sweeping the country had repercussions in Florida, and there were many in Jacksonville who thought the establishment of a hospital was not necessary, at least at that moment. Only through the determined efforts of a group of dedicated Jacksonville women-Mrs. Theo- dore Hartridge, Mrs. J. D. Mitchell, and Mrs. Aristides Doggett- was the goal achieved. St. Luke’s Hospital opened March 11, 1873. It was the first institution in the state devoted exclusively to the care of the sick and the first charitable institution in Jacksonville. The story of St. Luke’s is a microcosm of Jacksonville and Florida’s growth and development during the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Its history, as outlined in his book, produced by its officers and directors, reveals the sincere and enthusiastic support that it received from the whole community. People of all faiths and representing every economic group gave of their time and means to ensure the success of the hospital. The history of St. Luke’s reminds us of the hardiness and individuality of our ancestors. Government subsidies and fund-raising organizations were little known at the time that St. Luke’s was getting started. The hospital was erected by the people, for the people, and of the people. This brief but very readable book also reveals the ability of Americans to rebuild out of the ashes of destruction. St. Luke’s had hardly begun its growth in the community when it was destroyed in the Great Fire of May, 1901. Quickly it was rebuilt, larger in size, more efficient in operation, and even better equipped to serve the public. In 1885 Florida’s first school of nursing was established in St. Luke’s. It already had a woman doctor serving as superintendent. These were still the days when female doctors were regarded with a great deal of suspicion. A large number of men and women, doctors and lay people, are responsible for this book and here again we have an example of a community project. This volume reflects the thoughts of numerous people connected with the growth and development of St. Luke’s. The pictures and sketches add to its interest and value. There is a list at the end of the book showing the hundreds of donations that have been given to the hospital over the years, everything from preserves, carpentry work, whiskey, cakes, old BOOK REVIEWS 375 flannel, a copy of Schiller’s poems, to fruit, men’s underclothing, and children’s toys. SIDNEY STILLMAN Jacksonville, Florida

The Urban Political Community: Profiles in Town Politics. By Gladys M. Kammerer, Charles D. Farris, John M. DeGrove, Alfred B. Clubok. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1963. viii, 216 pp. Preface, appendix, index. Paper $1.95.) This short paper-back on local politics is a by-product of research on the problem of city manager tenure and turnover. Hav- ing completed their technical monograph on that specific problem, the authors wisely decided to re-examine their data for the light they might throw on more general problems of local politics. While the book is addressed to “the undergraduate student of political science,” it will have appeal to any reader interested in the enduring problem of how man governs himself. Even those with no general interest in political science will find it a fascinating account of political life in eight Florida communities-and they can, moreover, enjoy the detective game of trying to discover which real communities are represented by the fictitious names employed by the authors. The objective of the study is quite broad: “to acquaint the reader with the political process at the local level-with the forces that produce significant community decisions.” The research sites are eight communities ranging from 5,000 to 60,000 in population. All of the communities utilize the council-manager form of government, which eliminates the possibility of tracing their differences in political style to differences in formal governmental structure. The authors take advantage of this situation, which has the effect of holding one important set of variables constant, to look for other sources of variation in political style. The data came from structured interviews with “influentials” in the communities. The authors do not dwell on technical problems of methodology, such as specifying precisely the uni- verse of influentials or indicating the number of interviews conducted in each community. People in major governmental and civic positions in each community were interviewed, and their 376 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

reports were regarded as valid when they were in agreement. Since the researchers sought factual information about political events rather than opinions on those events, this procedure appears well suited to their task. Each political profile offers material on the city’s history, population, appearance, economy, and power structure; its political structure; major issues in deciding what kind of city it shall become; decisions on hiring and firing city managers; and trends in the clique structure of the community. As a departure from the traditional treatment of local government in primarily formal terms, these profiles offer keen insights into the political process. The reader is left to draw his own conclusions until the final chapter of the book, which brings the comparative findings together into basic generalizations about local government. Two limitations of the book are deliberately built into the research design: it cannot deal with formal political variables as an independent influence on political behavior, and its findings can be applied to non-Florida cities or cities outside the population range included in the study only with great caution. This reader felt that another limitation came from the tendency to account for variations in political style - “monopolistic” or “competitive” - in somewhat circular terms: politics will be monopolistic where a common interest (generally socio-economic) is dominant and competitive where conflicting interests seek control. The authors would join with the reviewer in the hope that future research will address itself to the conditions under which single or conflicting interests can be expected to emerge. Non-Floridians will be impressed by the reference to the first occupant of an apartment house for ‘‘upper middle-class retirees” as a retired mil- lionaire who was born to wealth. What does it take to be lower upper-class in Florida? In addition to its descriptive interest and its theoretical im- plications, this book deserves praise for what it is not. Unlike most volumes with as many as four authors, it is not incoherent or inconsistent in concepts or organization, and its style is not such as to suggest it was written by a committee. It should prove a useful and readable supplement to the standard treatments of local government. JAMES W. PROTHRO University of North Carolina BOOK REVIEWS 377

William Fitzhugh and His Chesapeake World, 1676-1701: The Fitzhugh Letters and Other Documents. Edited with an introduction by Richard Beale Davis. (Chapel Hill: The Uni- versity of North Carolina Press, 1963. xvi, 399 pp. Map, illustrations, index. $7.50.) Although his name first appeared on colonial records in 1673, William Fitzhugh of Bedfordshire, England, may have entered Virginia three years earlier, with sufficient funds to acquire considerable acreage. In addition to a dowry, a young wife brought him her share of her father’s estate. After a few years’ residence in Westmoreland, Fitzhugh secured land bordering on the Potomac River in frontier Stafford County and built a sim- ple wooden dwelling for his wife. Prospering both as a planter and a lawyer, he increased his estate and represented Stafford in the House of Burgesses. When he died in 1701, he left an estate of more than 54,000 acres, forty-three slaves, and many valuable personal items. William Fitzhugh enjoyed writing letters and fortunately the methodical planter-lawyer made copies of them. Included in this book are 212 of them, the first to Richard Lee on May 15, 1679, and the last to John Pemberton on April 26, 1699. His letters served a utilitarian purpose: most of them were written to merchants who handled his tobacco shipments and to the cap- tains of their ships who transported his product from Virginia to England; others related to his legal practice or official duties; some were personal in nature. But many of his business letters included subjective expressions of his philosophy, his likes and dislikes, and his opinions and beliefs. Frequently his pompous formality, trite maxims, or long involved sentences exasperate the reader. Occasionally the writer emerges with his concerns, piety, sympathy for his white indentured servants, or callous attitude toward Negro slaves or Indians. But his letters are an essential source for the economic, political, and social conditions in Vir- ginia and relations of the colonial with the Englishman. The Fitzhugh letters were originally published in the first six volumes of The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography from the transcripts replete with errors in spelling, punctuation, capi- talization, inaccurate translation of Latin words, and miscopied English phrases. After locating an “original letter-book,” owned 378 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

by a direct descendant of William Fitzhugh, the numerous dis- crepancies between the printed letters and those in the letter- book made a new edition necessary. In addition to the corrected Fitzhugh correspondence and speeches and a thirteen-page will and inventory of the colonial Virginian, the editor has added excellent factual and interpretative footnotes and a fifty-three page introduction. The latter places Fitzhugh in his era and describes his life on his tobacco plantation, his work as a planter and a lawyer, and his political activity. The precise style, failure to present biographical information clearly, and the omission of some needed dates detract from the value of this introduction, but overall the book, published in a handsome edition, is an outstanding contribution to colonial literature.

REMBERT W. PATRICK University of Florida

The South Carolina Regulators. By Richard Maxwell Brown. (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1963. xi, 230 pp. Notes, appendix, bibliography, index. $5.50.) In this time of tensions among us in 1964, it is intriguingly interesting to note that irregular violence on a sizeable scale has been a part of American history intermittently since its beginning. Our nation was born in the Revolution, molded by the Civil War, and still struggles for an ultimate destiny. This book about some of our earliest vigilantes is therefore a timely volume. The movement of the South Carolina Regulators occurred some three years before a similar one took place in North Caro- lina. The term “Regulator” is said by the author to have been copied from the South Carolina movement which was active for several years prior to 1769 when it was brought to a close by moderation in law-enforcement. This lively, well-researched book by Professor Brown delineates for the first time much of the local color and historic detail which accompanied the Regulators in South Carolina, as well as the exciting and bloody events. The South Carolina Regulators were ambitious back country property holders, determined to end lawlessness in their region. Their purpose was to discipline offenders and to establish an orderly society. The prior defeat of the Cherokee Indians had BOOK REVIEWS 379 assured the permanence of the white settlement in the back country but had left in its wake a welter of destruction. The settlers had adopted the brutalizing tactics of Indian warfare. There was social disorganization in the crowded communities, corruption in the handling of supplies for the forts, and religious hysteria which culminated in murders. “A jungle morality reigned under the strain of the crisis,” and as a result, the economy became in- feebled. To remedy this situation, the Regulators were formed. They had good intentions but soon they were also guilty of excesses. They tried to supervise family life, morals, collecting of debts, labor conditions, and eventually acted like a government, all, however, without authority of the royal officials. Not only did they seize and beat their victims with lash and bayonet but they even put some of them to death, usually by summary hanging. The author points out, however, that these Regulators did not lynch those whom they punished, nor did they choose their victims haphazardly. But when the movement became too arbi- trary and too violent, it was abolished by the more moderate elements of the colony. This volume is a scholarly work containing many facts valuable to the historian and it is at the same time interesting to the lay reader. On the whole it is well written, has excellent source references, and it adds considerably to our knowledge of this little-known movement of our early American history.

NORTH CALLAHAN New York University

The Papers of John C. Calhoun. Volume II, 1817-1818. Edited by W. Edwin Hemphill. (Columbia: The University of South Carolina Press, 1963, xciv, 513 pp. Introduction, notes, bibliography, index. $10.00.) The new editor of the Calhoun papers, W. Edwin Hemphill, was confronted with a difficult decision when he was requested to complete the work initiated a number of years ago by the late Professor Robert L. Meriwether. The first volume included the full text of every personal and public document that had been 380 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY found for the years from 1801 to 1817, but if publication were continued on this scale, the period covered by the second would be only a single month. The number of letters and other documents concerned with Calhoun as Secretary of War in Monroe’s two administrations was such that eighty-eight volumes would be required to reprint them in full, so some other solution had to be found. Mr. Hemphill, most wisely it seems to me, has decided that what would be most useful is a finding list for all the documents, rather than complete printing of a selected few, and so the present volume is quite different in form and content from the first. The editor has abstracted and identified most of the documents, telling where they may be found, and then with intelligent dis- crimination has selected a few for complete textual reproduction. He has also written a preface and introduction, which, though occasionally over-wordy and repetitious, give to the reader a sense of time and place, of who the persons are and with what they were concerned. Regrettably he has felt it necessary to include many high- flown words of praise and also, on occasion, to tell more than he can know. Though his documents are silent as to the reasons why Calhoun was offered or accepted the cabinet post, Mr. Hemphill includes a long discussion of “some considerations that would seem to have prompted Calhoun to decline and others that would have motivated him to accept.” Phrases such as ‘‘may well have” and “we can suppose” occur too frequently in the text, but otherwise the editor has done a most useful and valuable job.

THOMAS P. GOVAN New York University

Ante-Bellum Thomas County, 1825-1861. By William Warren Rogers. Florida State University Studies, No. 39. (Tallahas- see: Florida State University, 1963. xvi, 136 pp. Bibliog- raphy, appendices, index. $4.50.) To Florida readers this history of Thomas County, Georgia, from the beginning of settlement in 1825 to the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861 is important because with a few BOOK REVIEWS 381 changes in the name of persons and places it might be the history of almost any county in Middle Florida which was being settled at about the same time. Further, the cotton crop of Thomas County was marketed through Tallahassee and St. Marks until Georgia railroads reached the area. The inconvenience of going to Tallahassee for banking services helped to inspire the organization of the first bank in the county. This county history is also important as a commendable example of the proper relationship of amateur and professional historians. The idea of writing the history of the county originated with the Thomasville chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The Thomas County Historical Society underwrote the project and individuals and organizations helped by providing information and documents. The author brings to it the training and skills of the professional historian. He also provides the non- local sources of data and places the story in a broader than local perspective to produce a well balanced and well documented narrative. The account covers the life of the community in all of its aspects. Though it is emphasized that all classes of people helped to develop the county, it becomes, like the nearby Middle Florida counties, a typical ante-bellum southern society based upon cotton plantations and slavery. The longest chapter in the book is devoted to a description of plantations and their people. This is inevitable since the planters were the accepted leaders of the community, and any historian soon learns that the yeoman (spelled yoeman in the text) however worthy leaves little record, whereas the gentry are written about if they themselves do not leave any record. This reviewer feels that in local history, however sound and well written it may be, the inclusion of pictures of historic persons, places, and events can enormously enrich the story and increase the popular appeal. They are often omitted because of cost. It seems a misfortune. CHARLTON W. TEBEAU University of Miami

Negro Slavery in Louisiana. By Joe Gray Taylor. (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1963. xi, 260 pp. Intro- duction, bibliography, index. $6.00.) 382 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

The informed American citizen cannot but be aware that his nation is going through a massive re-adjustment and re-examination of race relations. This volume is not addressed to the problems of today. It is too honest a work of historical scholarship to attempt such a thing. Nevertheless, it is important for people in this spring of 1964 to know far more than has been known before about the long and tragic history of the Negro in the United States. This book will have an important place in the literature of slavery and of the Negro. Carefully and thoroughly researched, Professor Taylor’s hook goes into the actual condition of the Negro slave in Louisiana. It is descriptive and provocative with no effort at emotional or sensational appeal, although the opportunities are abundant in the material cited. Importantly, there is a genuine effort on the part of the author to present slavery as it must have been experienced by the slave. The reader should recognize the extreme difficulty in this approach by recalling that the conditions of slavery itself prohibited the accumulation of documents, letters, diaries, wills, and other primary sources with which the historian works. Most of the primary and secondary sources are of white origin. Nevertheless, this book is an analysis end description of Negro slavery, not a study of what white people in Louisiana thought about slavery. This is a well-documented, carefully developed, compact study of an extremely important segment of American history. It should be read by anyone seriously concerned about Negroes, slavery, and the South. WILLIAM E. HIGHSMITH Asheville-Biltmore College

Civil War Ironclads: The Dawn of Naval Armor. By Robert Mac- Bride. (Philadelphia and New York: Chilton Books, 1962. xi, 185 pp. Illustrations, appendices, bibliography, index. $7.50.) The author has brought to bear in this book his talents as a professional commercial artist and designer and as a non-professional writer with love and knowledge of the sea acquired as a gunner’s mate, U.S.N., during World War II. Giving a brief ac- BOOK REVIEWS 383 count of the development of ironclad warships during the early and middle 1800’s, he ascribes this development to the necessity for finding a defense against the increasing firepower of modem naval ordnance. His method is encyclopedic, by ships and classes of ships in the part relating to the United States Navy, and by naval stations in the part relating to the Confederate Navy. The work is illustrated by line sketches, obviously developed from outline drawings contained in the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies and in the Annual Reports of the [United States] Secretary of the Navy, 1861-1865. Part One begins with a short account of the United States’ first experiment with an ironclad warship. The Stevens Battery, begun in 1842 as a self-propelled floating battery, was still incomplete in 1861. After the successes of the C.S.S. Virginia in 1862 and upon recommendation of a board of officers, plans were drawn for converting the battery into a turreted steam ram. How- ever, by 1874, she was not yet finished, and this costly experiment was then scrapped. The author did not mention what might be regarded as a somewhat redeeming fact that the builders and designers of this naval miscarriage did build and donate to the United States, in 1862, a small and much simpler ironclad, the Naugatuck, which saw undistinguished service during the war. The author’s analysis of the Monitor’s design and performance as weapons system concept is very satisfactory. Proceeding from his description and analysis of the Monitor, the author de- cribes and discusses the characteristics and capabilities of several classes of ironclads built by the United States during the war. In Part One, the emphasis is almost wholly on the design and operational aspects of Northern ironclads, with only as much combat detail as is necessary to illumine their fighting worth or their limitations. Much less space in Part Two is devoted to the naval architecture of Southern ships, but the combat operations of the two navies is described. The author points out that Con- federate ironclad construction got underway earlier and in larger volume than in the North; but the insufficiencies of the Southern iron industry permitted the North rapidly to forge ahead. “Com- pared to the conventional ironclad being built in Europe, and in the North,” he says, “there is no question that the Confederate design was superior.” The shortage of shipwrights in the South 384 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

impelled the adoption of refined techniques to the end that ordinary house carpenters could be employed. Construction and performance of Confederate ironclads might well have equalled their objectives except for industrial handicaps imposed upon the South in trying to maintain their armor plate and marine engine production schedules. Another Confederate weakness lay in the general tendency of naval constructors to underestimate the draft of their ships, thereby limiting their maneuverability in shoal water, often causing critical, even fatal, situations to develop in combat at low tide. The usefulness of the book, from the historian’s point of view, is much diminished by the absence of documentation and the inadequacy of the bibliography. The index contains some slips in page references. The text is quite accurate, although occasional errors were noted. The five ironclad frigates built for the Confederacy in England, Scotland, and France warrant a more extended treatment. While the author has made a very real contribution to the literature an the construction and use of ironclads in the War Between the States, there still remains room for a more definitive treatment of the use and performance of armor an the warships of the 1860’s. WILLIAM M. ROBINSON, JR. Quincy, Florida

A Diary of Battle: The Personal Journals of Colonel Charles S. Wainwright, 1861-1865. Edited by Allan Nevins. (New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1962. xviii, 549 pp. Introduction, maps, notes, appendix, index. $8.75.) Charles S. Wainwright had talents and advantages that en- abled him to produce a diary of exceptional value to students of Civil War military history. A well-educated Hudson Valley aristocrat who had traveled in Europe, studied artillery operations and gained experience as a militia officer, he served in the Army of the Potomac as Chief of Artillery in the First Corps, and later in the Fifth Corps. He rose from major to brevet brigadier general and participated in much of the hard fighting from Williams- burg to Appomattox. The journal that he methodically kept eventually filled five large notebooks and totaled approximately BOOK REVIEWS 385

530,000 words. Allan Nevins has selected the historically important passages and skillfully formed them into a continuous narrative with concise background summaries where necessary. The result is a remarkably readable and informative commentary an the war. Two special merits of the diary, as Nevins points out, are its revealing studies of great battles and of Union generals. Wain- wright, suggests Nevins, “collected materials and critical points of view” on the battles “as if he intended to write a history of them. After Antietam, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg he inquired for the impressions of other officers . . . and set them down beside his own.” Wainwright’s comments on Hooker, Burnside, Meade, and Gouverneur K. Warren are often harsh, emphasizing weak character and bad temper. McClellan he greatly admired as a military organizer and strategist. Grant, he felt, needlessly sacrificed men in frontal assaults on Lee’s fortified lines. As for that amateur general, Abraham Lincoln, he was an ungentlemanly “gawk,” a disgrace as President, a farce as a strategist. As late as Octo- ber, 1864, the not always perceptive Wainwright was writing, “there is not a great man living in this country.” HAL BRIDGES University of Colorado

Federals on the Frontier: The Diary of Benjamin F. McIntyre, 1862-1864. Edited by Nannie M. Tilley. (Austin: The University of Texas Press, 1963. xv, 429 pp. Introduction, maps, illustrations, notes, index. $7.50.) This handsome book, published with assistance from a Ford Foundation grant, reproduces in its entirety the day-by-day diary of a Union soldier in the Nineteenth Iowa Infantry. It is divided into three parts. In the first, Sergeant and later Lieutenant Mc- Intyre recorded his experiences in the Ozarks of Missouri and Arkansas between September, 1862, and June, 1863. The second part covers the next five months when his company operated along the lower Mississippi River. In the third part his regiment joined the forces of General Nathaniel P. Banks, crossed the Gulf of Mexico, and occupied Brownsville, Texas, between No- 386 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY vember, 1863, and August, 1864. The diary ends abruptly shortly after McIntyre left Texas although he served around Pascagoula, Mississippi, and Mobile, Alabama, until mustered out in July, 1865. McIntyre was apparently a keen observer and devoted to accuracy of detail. His spelling leaves much to be desired, but his realistic accounts of battles, civilians, and the everyday life of soldiers are both revealing and interesting. In many places he employs a typically flowery nineteenth century rhetorical style. Rejoicing over the victory at Vicksburg, he exclaimed: “Rebellion has come-unholy hands have been raised to tear from its proud position that emblem of our nationality. But true hearts and brave hands stand ready to sacrifice everything for its maintain- ance, and yieald fortune, wealth and comfort in its protection.” He expresses frank opinions about his superiors and the conduct of the war; his dislike of Schofield and his disgust with Banks are obvious. The only two engagements of significance included in this account are the Battle of Prairie Grove, Arkansas, in December, 1862, which he describes in graphic detail, and the fall of Vicks- burg. The real value of the work to the Civil War scholar and the general reader alike stems from McIntyre’s keen observations and trenchant comments about people, places, and events. Much of it reflects the typical impatience of Westerners with Easterners and their management of the war. Particularly interesting are his descriptions of Brownsville and Matamaros and his interpretation of current happenings in Mexico. Three maps and twenty illustrations, primarily from Harpers’ Weekly and Frank Leslie’s Weekly, are included. Professor Tilley has done a thorough and meticulous job of editing the diary. Exhaustive footnotes, citing Roster and Record of Iowa Soldiers, O. R. A., Battles and Leaders, and numerous other primary and secondary sources of information, contain ex- planatory material on persons and operations. Much of the information in the footnotes, it seems to this reviewer, could have been included more effectively in introductory statements to each of the major divisions in the book. Indeed, one wonders if an abridgement of the diary including more editorial comment would have had greater appeal to the average reader. The complete text, BOOK REVIEWS 387 however, contains much valuable information and many insights for the serious student of the Civil War period. ALLEN J. GOING University of Houston

Two Roads to Sumter. By William and Bruce Catton. (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1963. 285 pp. Intro- duction, index. $5.95. The Cattons, father and son, have sought a unique frame in which to present their account of the separation of the nation. They start with the pattern of the early lives of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis, who were both born in frontier Kentucky less than a year apart, and begin by describing the historic and cultural forces which shaped their attitudes and careers into epi- tomes of the national dilemma. The opening chapter on Kentucky as a microcosm of all the peoples, stocks, attitudes, and ambitions which made up the fabric of American life, is superb. But the Kentucky period as a point of common departure for the theme of the book becomes a dis- appointment, especially since Davis lived there only for the first two years of his life (he returned later as a student), and was in a family in which the presence of slaves was always considered normal and proper, whether in Georgia, Kentucky, or Mississippi. Likewise the attitudes and outlook of the Lincoln family, for whom Kentucky was also a transient experience, owe little to that particular period of residence. Kentucky, therefore, turns out to be a rather insignificant geographical accident in the lives of the two protagonists. The book largely fails in its early promise of sociological and psychological insights in forming the historical narrative, the Lincoln-Davis framework pretty much falls apart, and a decent history of the origins of the Civil War emerges. In flowing prose and with strikingly felicitous turns of phrase, the Cattons take us through the middle decades of the century. Their portrayal of the advent of industrialism is a tour de force in brevity, conciseness, and interpretation. Their discussion of the Southern way of life has presence and balance. They inject an interesting note in explaining the collapse into war as due in part to an overdose of individualism and social irresponsibility 388 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

flowing from the imperfectly applied political principles of John Locke. The account of the retreat and final eclipse of moderation during the 1850’s is adequate and rises above the conventional, it seems to me, only in analyzing the elements of the statesman and the politician in Lincoln and in interpreting the doctrine of the Dred Scott decision and popular sovereignty. By this stage of the narrative the Lincoln-Davis frame has lost meaning, the latter individual being replaced logically by Stephen Douglas, with Davis thereafter emerging from the wings only in the last moments as the spokesman for the Southern aristocracy. Every book on the Civil War must, of course, state what the causes of the war were. The Cattons refuse to put the whole blame on the small group of extremists and demagogues on either side, although they are made to share it. “Blame,” they write, “ . . . must rest in large measure at the door of men like Jefferson Davis, who stands as the pre-eminent representative of the dominant faction in Southern politics.” And of this elite, “. . . their greatest single failure was an inability to understand that what Mt. Vernon and Monticello had been to the nation in 1790, or The Hermitage in 1830, Brierfield [Davis’ plantation] could not possibly be in 1860, or ever again.” Further, “Their gravest blunder, and in retrospect the least excusable, was the notion that they could participate - even lead - in whipping up the most extreme and uncompromising attitude among their constituents and local party delegations, then restrain these attitudes in time to avert misfortune.” It comes as an anti-climax, therefore, to read near the end of the book: “The most important single explanation for the coming of the Civil War is undoubtedly the simplest one: so few, North or South, had the haziest conception of what sort of war it would be.” The gist of the matter is that Southern leadership did not know what time it was. FRANKLIN A. DOTY University of Florida BOOK REVIEWS 389

The Alabama Confederate Reader. By Malcolm C. McMillan. (University, Alabama: University of Alabama Press, 1963. 468 pp. Illustrations, notes, index. $7.75.)

The Alabama Confederate Reader is a refreshing departure from the usual publication which has appeared during the centennial of the Civil War. Malcolm C. McMillan, research professor of history, Auburn University, begins each chapter, the first being “The Gathering Storm,” with a page or less of his own text preceding a verbatim account of the chapter’s subject taken from current newspapers, letters of prominent participants in the events, diaries, reports, and other original documents. Grand strategy and the over-all picture have gotten most of the attention in commemorative works heretofore. Now works like this one of Dr. McMillan are giving us intimate views of life on many levels - legislative, departmental, military, domestic. Wit- ness Thomas R. R. Cobb, brother of Howell Cobb, who wrote to his wife almost daily, begging her to come to Montgomery, certainly to be there by the time of the inauguration and reporting, “By the way, there is a great uniformity in suppers in this city [Montgomery]. They commence with oyster soup, then comes fish salad and fried oysters, then grated ham or beef and sardines with waffles and coffee or tea, then cakes and jellies, Charlotte Russe and what is considered here the greatest delicacy ‘Am- brosia’ which is nothing but sliced oranges and grated coconut.” A foreign correspondent reports, “I was glad when bedtime approached, that I was not among the mattress men. One of the gentlemen in the bed next the door was a tremendous projector in the tobacco juice line.” A war clerk reports on Bob Toombs, whom he described as “a portly gentleman but with the pale face of the student and the marks of a deep thinker. To gaze at him in repose, the casual spectator would suppose from his neglect of dress, that he was a planter in moderate circumstances, and of course not gifted with extraordinary powers of intellect; but let him open his mouth, and the delusion vanishes. At the time alluded to he was surrounded by the rest of the cabinet, in our office, and the topic was the policy of the war. He was for taking the initiative, and carrying the war into the enemy’s country. And as he warmed 390 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY with the subject, the man seemed to vanish, and the genius alone was visible.” From letters of Kate Cumming of Mobile, who arrived at Corinth immediately after Shiloh, we learn that “The men are lying all over the house, on their blankets, just as they were brought from the battle-field. They are in the hall, on the galley, and crowded into very small rooms. The foul air from this mass of human beings at first made me giddy and sick, but I soon got over it. We have to walk, and when we give the men anything, kneel in blood and water; but we think nothing of it at all.” There are also included annual reports of General Josiah Gorgas, chief of ordnance, recounting the difficulties of securing saltpetre and sulphur for powder: “I feel more uneasiness on this point [securing lead] than on all the others. The requisitions have, however, been fully made, through the energy of the Nitre and Mining Bureau and our own exertions in gleaning the battle- fields.” Dr. McMillan has woven matter like the above into a most satisfactory account of the war in general, and, particularly, of the role played by the citizens of Alabama. ADAM G. ADAMS Coral Gables, Florida

Nine Men In Gray. By Charles L. Dufour. (Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Company, 1963. xviii, 364 pp. Pref- ace, illustrations, notes, bibliography. $4.95.) Here are sketches of nine Confederates, some better known than others, but all of them in the category of the less well-known men. Author Dufour did well in his selection, for all had interesting careers, and Dufour made the most of his opportunity in bringing them to life again. Most of them he chose because they commanded his admiration, as they will likewise do for the readers of this volume; but there was one who was execrated by apparently everybody except his wife, President Jefferson Davis, and himself - and history apparently has never added a fourth to these admirers. This person was Lucius B. Northrop, commissary general of the Confederacy. BOOK REVIEWS 391

There are five generals in the group, and it would be difficult to determine which one might be best known today: probably it would be Richard “Dick” Taylor, a son of old “Rough and Ready” Zachary Taylor and a brother-in-law of President Davis, who is remembered best for his excellent book, Destruction and Recon- struction. But that fighting Irishman Patrick Cleburne would run Dick a close race, if not outdistance him. And where could we put Edward Porter Alexander, if not near the top? - a man who saved First Manassas for the Confederacy by his system of signals. William Mahone gained as much infamy after the war by going over to the Republicans, as he won fame during the struggle. The great artilleryman Turner Ashby, the “Beau Sabreur of the Val- ley,” became a great sentimental hero of the war, in which both he and Cleburne were killed. All but one of the others lived for varying periods afterwards, Alexander not dying until 1910. Another sentimental hero was William (Willie) Ransom Johnson Pegram, the least warlike-looking hero of the Confeder- acy, but a superb cannoneer, who was killed shortly before Ap- pomattox. Only one naval hero made Dufour’s list, Charles W. “Savez” Read, whose sketch seems less well done and whose place in Confederate annals is less well-known. The one whose military career was short and whose early life was as little known as was his later life, was the incomparable propagandist Henry Hotze. He was born in Switzerland and there he died. As de one to interpret the Confederacy to England (and incidentally to France and Ireland) no one could have improved on his work. Residing in England mostly during the war, he never returned to the United States. Another candidate for these sketches would undoubtedly have been Roberdeau Wheat of the Louisiana Tigers, had not Dufour already done a whole book on him. In these nine sketches Dufour has contributed an interesting volume to Civil War literature and has rescued for a great many people eight heroes and one misanthrope. Of course, the heart of all these sketches is the four years of the war, but enough is added in bringing these men up to the war and in dismissing them (those who were not killed in the struggle) to round out their lives. This book is not a pot-boiler, but a scholarly, interestingly- written work based on proper sources. E. MERTON COULTER University of Georgia 392 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

We Dissent. Edited by Hoke Norris. (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1962. vii, 211 pp. Introduction, index. $4.95.) To judge the South of today solely on the basis of newspaper headlines about “massive resistance” and racial violence may make the segregationist, South and North, complacently confident and the integrationist despairingly disturbed. What makes news in the mass media is never the whole truth and seldom reflects the most enduring forces at work. In this book, the editor has brought together an impressive series of articles providing evidence of the growing opposition to the dominantly segregationist sentiment of the South. The viewpoints included are rarely reported in news stories, but they represent a trend of considerable importance. A single theme pervades these varied offerings: “There are many Souths.” The book is ample reminder of this truth, which Southerners as well as Northerners and Westerners at times forget. The perceptive background article which opens the volume, written by Wilma Dykeman and James Stokely, denies that there is a “monolithic South.” Lenoir Chambers, discussing the challenge of the United States Supreme Court decision on public school de- segregation, states this theme parenthetically. Editor Hoke Norris, in juxtaposing the stubborn South and the new South, announces it directly. Jonathan Daniels make indirect (and overly optimis- tic) use of the theme, and the entire collection bears witness to the variety. The inclusion of Florida Governor LeRoy Collins’ radio-TV plea to the people of the state in a tense 1960 racial situation provides an illustration of a raw political courage exhibited rarely by Southern leaders. Ralph McGill’s article, reprinted from The Saturday Evening Post, is probably the most direct and powerful in this collection. Thomas D. Clark’s “A Decade of Decision” reminds us of the economic factors which will weigh heavily in the struggle for racial justice. Kathleen Kern Sennett depicts vividly a white Southerner’s reactions to integration. Hodding Carter reports on the White Citizens’ Council in Mississippi and analyses the basis of its strength, while Francis Pickens Miller professes to see, somewhat prematurely to this reviewer, “Dawn in the South.” Borden Deal’s “The Sign on the Highway” represents the most “conservative” of these “liberal” views, yet he speaks BOOK REVIEWS 393 for many a moderate Southerner when he reports, “There is no communication between me and the Southern Negro.” Clearly the most poignant and poetic offering is “Into the Modern World” by James McBride Dabbs. “Some say that I dissent from the South,” he writes. “But as strange as it sounds, I am hardly conscious of dissenting from the South at all. It dis- sents from me.” None of these authors reflects more sensitively the tragic cleavage in the soul of many a white Southerner: “. . . when I was a little boy, I had stumbled upon a strange sense of the sadness of life. My parents spoke occasionally of someone’s having lost a child. I didn’t know what they meant, but since, if children were to be lost, the dark, endless woods back of the house would be the place for losing. I imagined them there, not frightened but each of them alone, the woods starred with lost, wandering children. Was this image some faint pre- monition against the time when I myself should be lost in the dark woods of the world? Was I innoculating myself against sadness long before its coming? More important than this, was I entering life with the pathos of an old defeat, enshrined in my grandmother and in the still unfurled Confederate banners, hanging like a mist about my boyish head?” Paul Green’s plaintive, mawkish piece bemoaning the excesses and blood-thirsty greed of the Civil War Centennial is the only unhappy inclusion. To say that the Civil War was “witless folly,” though obviously and terribly true, can be uttered with Green’s lofty dogmatism only by one who has lost a firm grasp on the tragic realities of man’s endless follies and has created for himself an idealistic heaven of rational perfection where “folly” is the sole remaining sin deserving damnation. The Introduction notes that “all the writers represented here are Southern-born, Southern-raised, white Protestants.” Why the emphasis? Perhaps because this group is most often stereotyped as “segregationist,” and the intention is to shatter this neat picture. Perhaps it is to white Protestants of the South that the writers wish especially to witness; certainly no group is more deeply enmeshed in the power structure of Southern society and could, if it would, do more to overthrow racial segregation. In any event we are given an instructive spectrum of insights from another South than that which burns buses and crosses, riots over 394 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

school integration, arrests Freedom Riders, and attacks sit-in demonstrators. We Dissent must be read by anyone seeking a deeper and more significant South than that proclaimed in reportorial sensa- tionalism. CHARLES S. McCoy Pacific School of Religion

The Public Lands: Studies in the History of the Public Domain. Edited by Vernon Carstensen. (Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1963. xxvi, 522 pp. Editor’s note, introduction, index. $6.75.)

This volume is a reproduction of thirty-one carefully selected articles which have appeared in various scholarly journals since 1905. More than half of these articles were published after 1945 in either the Mississippi Valley Historical Review or Agricultural History. Except for functional editorial changes the papers are reprinted as they were first published. The work is divided somewhat chronologically into five parts. The final section is an appendix on source materials for a study of the history of the public lands, and it also carries a reproduction of useful materials on this subject. A note of lively interest not usually encountered in works of this type is provided by a lengthy discussion of “The Railroad Land Grant Legend in American History Texts.” According to Robert S. Henry in his article by this title, the federal land grants to railroads have been greatly exaggerated by textbook writers as to both the size and worth of the grants made. The author also claimed that these transactions were not gifts but were made under terms and conditions by which the government actually profited. This article is followed by six papers whose authors are in disagreement with Henry’s thesis. These disagreements vary from a mild denial by David M. Ellis that Uncle Sam was a “canny landlord” to Fred A. Shannon’s suggestion that a people’s lobby should demand that, after three-quarters of a century of private profit from public gifts, the railroads should be returned to the people without recompense. BOOK REVIEWS 395

In addition to serving a scholarly purpose, the volume com- memorates the sesquicentennial of the Public Land Office. While the articles included are necessarily uneven in perspicuity and in general historical interest, they cover fairly adequately the major aspects of the history of the distribution and management of the public lands. Scholars working in this segment of economic history will find them useful in the form in which they are presented in this volume. There is substance of general interest in six excellently perceived introductory comments, each prepared by a specialist in the area discussed. For the general reader however, the volume offers a strong and restricted diet.

JAMES C. BONNER Georgia State College for Women

The Cherokees. By Grace Steele Woodward. (Norman, Okla- homa: The University of Oklahoma Press, 1962. xv, 359 pp. Illustrations, maps, bibliography, index. $5.95.) The Cherokee Indians have attracted the attention of many writers who have given their views with varying degrees of skill and understanding. The volume by Grace Steele Woodward is an example of Indian tribal history at its best. The sound research that went into the writing of the book has clarified many points of controversy in Cherokee history. John Ross “had only to tie his horse to a post in the square of any town or village in the Nation to be surrounded by hordes of Indians, most of whom were full bloods living back in the mountains or coves.” In the reference to an ordinary incident the author has revealed her insight with respect to the Indians, and to the relations of a well-known chief with his people. This was John Ross at the age of thirty-eight in Georgia. The brief passage throws into sharp relief every other reference to his activities, his purposes, and his character. The account of the factional murders in 1839 (John Ridge, Old Major Ridge, and Elias Boudinot) is based upon the records. The report of Chief John Ross to General Arbuckle, the suspicious attitude of the commandant, and the effects of the murders in the Indian Territory, are given with enough detail to provide a clear and connected story. 396 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

The author’s analysis of the incident shows keen understanding. “In a sense, these assassinations were reminiscent of Double- head’s execution by Major Ridge and two accomplices in 1808. Like the Ridges and Boudinot, Doublehead had participated in land cessions to the United States without the sanction of the entire nation, in violation of Cherokee law. Too, the Ridge- Boudinot murders paralleled in some respects the Creek murders of William McIntosh, Tustennugee, and Sam Hawkins, all three of whom had been executed by their people for making land cessions without consent of the tribe. But the Creek and Cherokee murders differed in this one respect: the Creek murders were authorized by the tribal council, whereas the Cherokee murders, in 1839, were clandestinely planned and executed.” Ross’s position during the American Civil War is difficult to grasp if we lose sight of the fact that the Indians had no great principle of union or of states’ rights to uphold. Probably the chief himself was never in doubt at any time as to what he had to do. His purpose was clear in his mind: be would take his position and shape his activities for the benefit of the Cherokee people. In maintaining his difficult stand, he had to adjust his actions to the varying fortunes of war on the western frontier. Neutrality was his original solution of the Indian tribe’s stunning problem. Caught between the vast power of the North on one side, and the militant zeal of the South on the other, Ross maintained his commitment until Wilson’s Creek in nearby Missouri had been won by the Confederate army. Then his position changed; but he had clung to the impossible dream of neutrality for a longer period than that of the peace-loving citizens of the border States - longer than the neutral stand of Kentucky’s governor. The Cherokee leader, in defense of his Civil War policies, explained the apparent shift of allegiance thus: “We are in the situation of a man standing alone upon a low naked spot of ground, with the water rising rapidly all around him. He sees the danger, but he does not know what to do. If he remains where he is, his only alternative is to be swept away and perish. The tide carries by him, in its mad course, a drifting log. It perchance comes within reach of him. By refusing it he is a BOOK REVIEWS 397 doomed man. By seizing hold of it he has a chance for his life. He can but perish in the effort, and may be able to keep his head above water until rescued or drift to where he can help himself.” This is the first comprehensive account of the Cherokees, and the value of the historical record is in no way reduced by the author’s readable style and selection of interesting narrative material. Many of the great Cherokees are introduced with the revealing touch of artistic composition and deep understanding. United States officials who were closely associated with Cherokee history, and citizens who worked with the Indians as missionaries or teachers, also receive attention. Of particular interest are the accounts of Samuel Austin Worcester, Elizur Butler, Cyrus Kingsbury, Evan Jones, Montfort Stokes, and Wil- liam Wirt. EDWIN C. MCREYNOLDS Cottey College MINUTES OF THE DIRECTORS MEETING, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA December 7, 1963

The officers and directors of the Florida Historical Society met in the headquarters of the Society, the Library of the Uni- versity of South Florida, at 9:30 a.m., December 7, 1963, with Dr. Frank Sessa presiding. Others present were: Charles Arnade, Rembert W. Patrick, Herbert J. Doherty, Jr., Ben C. Willis, Adam G. Adams, Ernest Jernigan, James R. Knott, Lucius S. Ruder, E. M. Covington, William M. Goza, Walter B. Hellier, Mrs. Ralph Davis, Margaret Chapman, and Thelma Peters. Dr. John Allen, president of the University of South Florida, wel- comed the board members and expressed his pleasure at having the Society headquarters on his campus. The minutes of the directors’ meeting, held at the time of the annual meeting in Sarasota in May, 1963, were not read since they had previously been circularized among the directors and published in the October, 1963, Florida Historical Quarterly. There was general discussion of the recent change of name from Cape Canaveral to Cape Kennedy. Mr. Goza moved that the directors go on record as approving the name, John F. Ken- nedy Space Center, for the facilities of the Launch Operations Center of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the facilities of the Atlantic Missile Range, but as opposing the geographical renaming of the cape itself and that a committee be appointed to frame the position the Society should take in the future concerning changes in Florida place-names. The motion was seconded by Judge Knott. In the discussion which followed, Dr. Arnade pointed out that many names had been changed in the past, some good names lost, and some, like Cow- ford were changed for the better. A vote was called for and the motion carried with Dr. Doherty voting against it and Miss Chap- man and Dr. Arnade abstaining. Dr. Sessa appointed Mr. Goza, Judge Knott, and Dr. Patrick to the committee called for by the above motion. The report of the committee for future action of the Society appointed at the May 2 directors’ meeting and consisting of Mr. [ 398 ] DIRECTORS’ MEETING, DECEMBER 7, 1963 399

Adams, chairman, and Mr. Goza, Dr. Arnade, Dr. Patrick, and Dr. Sessa was given by Dr. Sessa. The recommendations of the committee were: 1. that the Society put out a news letter between issues of the Quarterly so as to keep the membership informed of activities affecting the Society; 2. that the Society ask the State Board of Public Instruction to purchase the Quarterly for each public school in the state (about 2,000); 3. that the Constitution be amended to lengthen the term of directors, and that the state be divided into regions with a director from each region so as to achieve a better integration in the state; 4. that the Society seek more and better publicity; 5. that the president be allowed travel expenses so that he can attend meetings and other events where such attend- ance gives prestige to the Society; 6. that the duties of the executive-secretary be clarified; 7. that the Society give certificates of merit to worthwhile achievements in the writing of articles and books on Flor- ida history, the recipients of these awards to be decided by a committee. Mr. Willis moved that the directors approve in principle a supplemental news letter to be sent to members if and when the president finds this feasible. Dr. Doherty seconded the motion and it was carried unanimously. Dr. Arnade suggested that Flor- ida State University might take responsibility for the letter. Allen Morris was named as a possible writer of the letter. Mr. Goza moved that we approve in principle the suggestion of attempting to interest the State Board of Public Instruction in purchasing copies of the Quarterly for each public school; if this is unsuccessful to try to get legislative approval for this. Dr. Arnade seconded the motion and the motion carried. Dr. Patrick moved that we approve in principle the suggestion for amending the constitution proposed by Mr. Adams’ committee and that the work of preparing such amendments be turned over to the constitution and by-laws committee (chairman, Mr. Goza) to be reported on at the next meeting of the directors. Dr. Arnade seconded the motion and the motion carried. Mr. Covington moved that the president be allowed up to $300 a year for travel when representing the Society, the presi- 400 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

dent to file a report at the end of the year as to how the travel funds were used. Mr. Goza offered an amendment to this motion, that $150 be allowed for travel for the president for the remainder of this fiscal year-which ends April 1, 1964. The motion as amended was seconded and carried. The role of the executive-secretary was discussed and generally agreed upon. Miss Chapman requested that she be kept informed of Society activities. Dr. Doherty moved that Miss Chap- man be authorized to spend $200 for binding. Mrs. Davis seconded the motion and the motion was carried. Dr. Arnade moved that an awards committee be appointed to give certificates of merit for worthy publications in the field of Florida history. Mr. Adams seconded the motion and the motion carried. Mrs. Davis moved that Mr. Adams’ committee, the committee for future action, be continued as a standing committee. Miss Chapman seconded the motion and the motion carried. Dr. Patrick reported on the disposition of artifacts owned by the Society and once stored at the University of Florida. Most of these have been placed in the state museum in Gainesville. A worm-eaten desk was sold for $20. Mr. Goza suggested that we file a copy of our charter and constitution with the secretary of state and that we re-incorporate under a recently-passed law providing for non-profit corporations. Miss Chapman moved that the Society re-incorporate and that we do so with the present constitution unchanged, leaving changes to the annual meeting. The motion was seconded and carried. It was announced that three of our members, Dr. Patrick, Dr. Doherty, and Dr. Samuel Proctor, had been appointed to the publications committee of the St. Augustine Quadricentennial Commission. Dr. Doherty reported on the publication of the Quarterly. He said that other duties had forced him to resign the editorship effective July 1, 1964. He nominated Dr. Samuel Proctor to succeed him. The University of Florida will continue to support this position by giving the editor released time, student assistants, office space, postage and other expenses (in value between $8,000 and $10,000 per year) as long as the editor is from the Univer- sity of Florida staff. Dr. Arnade seconded the nomination. Miss DIRECTORS’ MEETING, DECEMBER 7, 1963 401

Chapman moved that the nominations close. The motion was seconded and carried. Judge Knott moved that the secretary cast an unanimous ballot for Dr. Proctor as the next editor of the Quar- terly. Mr. Goza seconded the motion and the motion carried. Dr. Patrick reported that 302 copies of his book, Aristocrat in Uniform, subsidized by Duncan L. Clinch, had been sold and that the University of Florida Press owed the Society $833.98 as of October 1, 1963, this representing 75% of the sale value of the 302 books. This money goes into the Julien Yonge Fund and the other 25% to the University of Florida Press. Dr. Pat- rick suggested that the Society might want to subsidize publications of books in the future using the Julien Yonge Fund for this purpose, royalties to be returned to the Fund. It was suggested that a manuscript by John Bemrose, Reminiscences of the Semi- nole War, recently edited by Dr. John K. Mahon, be considered for publication in this manner. Miss Chapman reminded the directors that Dr. Patrick had written the Clinch biography “out of the goodness of his heart,” receiving no remuneration for it. She suggested that the Society’s name should always be included in each publication sponsored by the Julien Yonge Fund. Mr. Goza announced that a member of the Society, Frank Laumer, has made a careful study of the Old Fort King Road and that beginning December 16, Mr. Laumer intends to hike the sixty miles from Ft. Brooks to the massacre site. If there are any members of the Society who would like to accompany him they may do so. Judge Knott said some boy scout troops might be interested in joining this hike. Mr. Goza moved that we take note of Mr. Laumer’s mapping of this historic route and that we accord him the support of the Society. Dr. Arnade seconded the motion and the motion carried. Mr. Hellier was asked by Dr. Sessa to check on a proposed “museum of marine archeology for preserving ship wrecks” to be located near Jupiter and to report back at the next meeting. Dr. Patrick moved that a letter of commendation be sent by the executive-secretary, representing the Society, to Dr. Merlin Cox of Daytona Beach Junior College for his excellent Florida history series on ETV. Dr. Arnade seconded the motion and the motion carried. Dr. Sessa commended Mr. Goza for his activity as membership chairman in adding ninety-five new members this year. Mr. 402 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

Goza sends a letter of welcome to each new member and urges each to get another member. Miss Chapman who also sends a letter and membership card to each new member. Miss Chapman announced that the Society had on deposit $12,612.98 and also owned some United Gas Company bonds. Each issue of the Quarterly costs about $1,000. Miss Chapman said there is considerable demand for reprints of the Quarterly. We could turn reprinting over to a company such as the Kraus Reprint Company and get back a 10% royalty or we could make photographic copies and handle these ourselves. Dr. Doherty moved that a consideration of the best method for reprinting be turned over to the publications committee for study. Miss Chapman said she had a request from Robert B. Sutton of Ohio State University for the names of three non-professional Florida historians. The directors authorized Miss Chapman to send to Mr. Sutton the names of Judge Knott, Mr. Willis, and Mr. Adams. The directors agreed to ask Dr. Merlin Cox of Daytona Beach Junior College to serve as judge of the Florida history essay contest this year. Judge Knott raised the question of advertising in the Quar- terly, saying that other historical publications used it. Miss Chap- man pointed out the difficulty of finding an advertising manager. No action was taken. Dr. Sessa thanked everyone for coming and said we would meet next in Miami at the time of the annual meeting in May. The meeting was adjourned. Respectfully submitted, Thelma Peters Recording Secretary NEWS AND NOTES Battle of Olustee Centennial

The centennial of the Battle of Olustee, the most important military action of the Civil War in Florida, was commemorated at the battlefield site on February 22, under the auspices of the State Library and Historical Commission. Although the actual date of the battle was February 20, 1864, the observance was held on February 22, a Saturday, because of the greater conven- ience of the day. United States Senator Spessard Holland was principal speaker, and Ed Fraser, secretary of the Florida Senate and former senator from Macclenny, presided at the exercises. A number of state officials and civic leaders were present. Preced- ing the Olustee rites, a memorial service was conducted in the Old Cemetery at Lake City where many of the soldiers who lost their lives in the battle are buried. Congressman D. R. Matthews spoke here. Two twelve-pound Napoleon cannon, exact replicas of guns used during the Civil War, were presented to the Florida Board of Parks and Historical Memorials for permanent display at Olustee Battlefield. These cast iron cannon were manufactured at the Department of Correction, Division of Industries, Govern- ment of the District of Columbia.

Constitution Day Celebration

Ceremonies marking the 125th anniversary of the Constitu- tional Convention of 1838 were celebrated December 7, 1963, at Port St. Joe. The day also was observed as the 50th anniversary of the founding of that city. Governor Farris Bryant and Congressman Robert Sikes spoke at the afternoon ceremonies held in Constitution Park. The St. Joseph Constitution was Flor- ida’s first constitution and it remained in effect from the time of Florida’s entrance into the Union in 1845 until shortly after the close of the Civil War.

Local and Area Societies and Commissions Florida Methodist Historical Society: This organization func- tions as an agency of the Florida Annual Conference of the Meth- [ 403 ] 404 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY odist church, and it collects and maintains materials relating to Methodism in Florida. The archives are located at Florida South- ern College Library, and include church histories, pictures, books, and annual conference and district conference records. The So- ciety meets three times a year; the March and October meetings are business meetings, but the June meeting is an open program meeting at which time a paper or presentation is made. Officers of the Society are J. A. Barley, Pahokee, chairman; Robert H. Carr, Zellwood, vice-chairman; James M. Smith, Gulfport, secretary; O. C. Howell, Plant City, treasurer; and Gordon N. Craig, Green Cove Springs, curator. Hernando De Soto Historical Society: The recently elected officers of this organization are Robert E. Talley, president; David Albright, president-elect; Paul Bartley, vice-president; Jack N. Shinn, treasurer; and Jerome Davis, secretary. These same officers serve also for De Soto Celebration, Inc. Hillsborough County Old Timers Association: The 40th annual assembly of the Old Timers Association was held at Gilchrist Park, Plant City, on October 17, 1963. Almost 500 adults were present. This organization was founded in 1923, and has met annually since to honor pioneer citizens of “original” Hillsborough County. Theodore Lesley, a member of the Hillsborough County Historical Commission, conducted a memorial service at the morning session. The oldest of those memorialized was a former slave, born in Hillsborough County, who died at the age of 109. Major Robert Johnson, U.S. Strike Command, MacDill Air Force Base, delivered the principal address of the day. Officers elected for 1963-64 were County Judge William C. Brooker, president; L. D. Simmons, vice-president; Mrs. Uz Pemberton, secretary; Colonel S. G. Harrison, chairman; and Theodore Lesley, master of ceremonies. Harry G. McDonald, county school attorney and former Florida legislator, was elected president emeritus. Historical Association of Southern Florida: The Association dedicated its Peacock Inn marker at 3 p.m., January 19, 1964, in Coconut Grove Bayfront Park. The marker was placed on the exact site of the inn which was open to the public in the early 1880’s and was the first hotel between Key West and Lake Worth. Mrs. Jean Louise Flagler Mook, granddaughter of Henry NEWS AND NOTES 405

M. Flagler, gave the dedicatory address, and the marker was un- veiled by Mrs. George E. Merrick, granddaughter of Charles Pea- cock, and by Wirth M. Munroe, son of the distinguished Coconut Grove pioneer. Gaylord (Lee) Price, chairman of the historic sites and marker committee, was master of ceremonies. Mrs. Ruby Leach Carson was the researcher for the marker text. The 86th program meeting of the Association was held Jan- uary 29, 1964. Everglades National Park Superintendent Stan- ley C. Joseph entitled the program which he presented: “What’s Ahead for Everglades National Park.” John W. Griffin, regional archaeologist, discussed recent developments in Florida archae- ology and told of the Glades’ tradition as it relates to the Calusa and Tequesta Indian groups which lived in Southern Florida. As- sistant Superintendent Carroll A. Burroughs presented a brief outline of the needs and plans for field research in the Park, and Ernst Christensen, chief park naturalist, described the projected Seven-Mile Road and Tower and the Visitor’s Center. A display of the plans of the Seven-Mile Tower was made. The Carl G. Fisher exhibit opened at the Historical Museum of Southern Florida on December 8, 1963, with special ceremonies sponsored by the Association.

Historical Society of Fort Lauderdale: According to the most recent issue of “New River News,” published by the Society, a large number of gifts, including books, manuscripts, and historical papers have been donated to the organization. The Society now has a membership of more than 350.

Jacksonville Historical Society: At the regular meeting of the So- ciety, November 13, 1963, Dr. Rembert W. Patrick, former editor of the Florida Historical Quarterly and research professor of history at the University of Florida, spoke on “The Writing of a Biography, General Duncan L. Clinch.” Dr. Patrick related some of the incidents and problems that he had in writing his book Aristocrat in Uniform which was published by the University of Florida Press last summer under the auspices of the Florida His- torical Society. The Jacksonville Historical Society cooperated with the Jack- sonville Ribault Quadricentennial Celebration Association in ar- 406 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY ranging an historical display at the Arts Festival Six last fall. The 300th anniversary of the founding of Fort Caroline, which is being celebrated this year, was the theme of the exhibit. Dr. Charles Fairbanks, head of the Department of Anthropology, Uni- versity of Florida, is aiding and advising the Society in its in- vestigations of archaeological sites. He replaces the late Dr. John M. Goggin, internationally known anthropologist, who for many years directed the Society’s archaeological program.

Jefferson County Historical Society: According to a report recently issued by Dr. James S. Sledge, president of the Society, $5,700 has already been raised toward the $20,000 that is needed for the purchase of the Wirwick-Simmons-Clements house, one of the oldest in North Florida. The house, originally constructed in 1830, will be restored and used as a meeting place for the So- ciety and as a museum and library. State Senator S. Dilworth Clarke is honorary fund drive chairman, and Richard H. Simp- son is finance committee chairman. The Society has 75 members.

Martin County Historical Society: Dr. Charlton Tebeau, chairman of the Department of History at the University of Miami and former president of the Florida Historical Society, addressed the Society at its evening meeting on January 24, 1964. Dr. Te- beau spoke on his recently published book They Lived in the Park which concerns the early residents of the Everglades Park area. The Society continues its many cultural and social activities, utilizing the Elliott Museum and the House of Refuge Mu- seum for its exhibits and film showings.

Palm Beach County Historical Society: On December 6, 1963, Louis Capron, well known author and authority on the Seminole Indians of Florida, spoke on “Things You Don’t Know About the Seminoles.” Mr. Capron’s latest historical novel is The Red War Pole. On January 17, 1964, Major Richard E. Paulson, distinguished diplomat and soldier, was the program speaker. The So- ciety’s newsletter reveals that its holdings are increasing through gifts made by members and persons interested in preserving the history of the Palm Beach area. The Society meets in “Whitehall” the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum. Recently, the trustees of NEWS AND NOTES 407 the museum authorized the demolition of the upper stories of the hotel building which had been attached to the original Flagler home. Several pieces of the original furniture and art works have been returned to the mansion and every effort is being made to return it to the way it looked when it was used as a residence.

Pensacola Civil War Round Table: William Venable discussed the Civil War Battle of Chickamauga at the January 2, 1964, meeting of the Round Table held in the new Liberal Arts Build- ing at the Pensacola Junior College. The Civil War Round Table has been enrolled as a Pensacola Junior College class, and in recent months has presented three specialists: Dr. Bell Wiley of Emory University, who discussed the common soldier in the Civil War at the September, 1963, meeting; Edwin C. Bears, research historian for the Vicksburg National Military Park, who described the Battle of Vicksburg at the October, 1963, meeting; and Dr. Perry Cochran, head of the Pensacola Junior College history department, who described the Old South in his paper delivered at the November, 1963 meeting.

Pensacola Historical Advisory Committee: Earle Bowden, president of the Pensacola Civil War Round Table was named chairman of the Pensacola Historical Advisory Committee, which has been organized by the Pensacola City Council to formulate a plan of action on historical restoration and preservation. The committee also includes Occie Clubbs, former director of the Florida Historical Society, and T. T. Westworth, Jr., a former director of the Society and presently a member of the Florida State Library and Historical Commission.

St. Augustine Historical Restoration and Preservation Commis- sion: In December, 1963, the Commission announced that agreement had been reached for purchase of two St. Augustine properties on St. George Street for reconstruction of historic homes. Preliminary archaeological work indicates that a large home built during the early 18th century occupied one of the properties located near the Old City Gates. It is believed that the home may have been destroyed by fire during Governor Moore’s at- tack on the city in 1702. The other building was once the 408 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY home of the family of the poet Stephen Vincent Benet and was constructed during the second half of the 18th century, likely in the British period.

STATE LIBRARY AND HISTORICAL COMMISSION

At a meeting held in Tallahassee, November, 1963, the Commission examined a fourteen-page report which included a number of specific recommendations made by Ralph Blasingame, Jr., Pennsylvania state librarian, for the construction of a building to house properly the Florida State Library and the State’s archives. This special study urges the immediate securing of key personnel to begin making arrangements for the proposed expanded library-archives facilities. In addition to providing reference and research facilities for official and state employees and leadership in the development of library services, the Blasingame report strongly urges the establishment of a State Archives so that research into the State’s past by historians and scholars can be encouraged and facilitated.

FLORIDA ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY

The Society held a meeting on November 16, 1963, at Or- lando with the Central Florida Anthropological Society serving as host. The New Maitland Research Center was visited, and during the afternoon session three papers were presented.

FLORIDA ARTS COUNCIL

Dr. Karl Kuersteiner, Dean of the Florida State University Music School, was named temporary president at the Florida Arts Council when it was organized in Tallahassee, December 2, 1963. The Council was planned by twenty-five Florida art groups to coordinate cultural activities in the state. Representatives from every state university and junior college were present at this organizational meeting. The first formal session of the Council is scheduled to meet in June, at which time permanent officers will be elected. NEWS AND NOTES 409

NATIONAL SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN DAMES

The recently organized Florida Assembly of the National So- icety of Southern Dames held its first state convention in Jack- sonville in November, 1963. Mrs. Murray Forbes Wittichen of Coral Gables, a member of the Florida Civil War Centennial Committee, is honorary president of the National Society. The organization has a three-fold purpose: Members are encouraged to read and understand the history of the South and to examine critically the lives of important Southerners who have made major contributions to the welfare of the country; to maintain a scholarship fund to aid artists and writers working on projects dealing with southern history; and to sponsor an eye bank program. The Florida Assembly voted to present a thousand dollar award every two years to a doctoral student of political science or history at a Southern land grant college or university. The scholarship, the Thomas Jefferson Award, will be presented for the first time in 1966. Mrs. Herbert O. Vance of Coral Gables, a director of the Historical Association of Southern Florida and a member of the Florida Civil War Centennial Committee, is national vice-president for Florida. Mrs. T. Aubrey Morris of Tallahassee, also a member of the Florida Civil War Centennial Committee, is state secretary.

SOUTHERN HISTORICAL SOCIETY PAPERS INDEX

A committee of scholars, historians, and interested persons, under the chairmanship of J. Ambler Johnston of Richmond, Vir- ginia, is preparing an accurate cumulative index of the Southern Historical Society Papers (Richmond, 1876-1959). A “General Index of [the] First Ten Volumes” appeared as an appendix to Volume 10 in 1882, and An Author and Subject Index to . . . Vols. 1-38 was issued in 1913. These, however, are really more in the nature of guides and do not meet the specifications of an index. Historians using this extraordinary mine of Confederate military chronicles still must spend much time in a page-by-page examination of the fifty-two volumes in the set to find what he needs. It is expected that the cumulative index will be completed in 1965, and it will be published then under the auspices of the Richmond Civil War Centennial Committee. 410 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

THE JULIEN CHANDLER YONGE MEMORIAL FUND

This fund was established by the members of the Florida Historical Society as an enduring memorial to the man who edited the Florida Historical Quarterly for thirty-one years. During more than three decades Julien C. Yonge was not paid a salary; frequently he used personal funds to cover the material costs of editing the Quarterly. The income from this endowment will be used to publish books on Florida. The fund now totals $3,800 but at least $10,000 is needed both as a memorial to a great Floridian and to provide a minimum income for publications. Mail your contribution to Margaret Chapman, secretary-treasurer, Florida Historical Society, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida. You can also help by buying Aristocrat in Uniform: General Duncan L. Clinch, for seventy-five per cent of net from sales of this book go to the YONGE MEMORIAL FUND. Send $5.50 to the University of Florida Press, University of Florida, Gaines- ville, Florida, for a copy.

CAPE KENNEDY

Because of the interest generated by the changing of the name of Cape Canaveral to Cape Kennedy, Professor Charles W. Arnade of the University of South Florida and a director of the Florida Historical Society, has prepared the following Note for the Florida Historical Quarterly: Sixteenth century maps in the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University and in the William Clements Library at the University of Michigan indicate that the name Cape Canaveral was used for the first time in 1545 on a map drawn by Alonso de Santa Cruz, the Spanish royal cosmo- grapher. Santa Cruz accompanied Sebastian Cabot on his expedition to South America in 1526, and remained in America about fice years. In 1545, he issued his Islario - Book of Islands which contains a Florida map listing Cape Canaveral by that name. The Florida delineation and nomenclature of this map became popular and was used by the seventeenth century Dutch cartographers, William Blaeu and Jan Jansson in their atlases. It is difficult to determine with absolute accuracy when the Cape was first discovered. There are serious doubts that Ponce de NEWS AND NOTES 411

Leon knew of the Cape, but some scholars are convinced that pre-Ponce de Leon voyages by John and Sebastian Cabot passed the Cape and recorded it on their charts. The Cape is clearly sketched for the first time on maps drawn around 1529 by the Italian Girolamo Verrazano, whose brother, Giovanni Verrazano, sailed an expedition to North America in 1523-1524 for the French. The map drawn in 1529 is based upon this voyage.

THE ANNUAL MEETING

The 1964 annual meeting of the Florida Historical Society will be held in Miami on May 8 and 9. The Board of Directors will meet on the evening of May 7. The program is being ar- ranged by Dr. Rembert W. Patrick, University of Florida. Theo- dore Pratt, Florida novelist from Delray Beach, is the banquet speaker.

A PERSONAL NOTE

A little over two years ago, the present editor of the Quar- terly was elected to his position by the Board of Directors. He succeeded Rembert W. Patrick, who had served for seven years, and Julien C. Yonge, who in more than thirty years as editor had largely made the Quarterly what it is today. Much to the regret of the current editor, this is the last number that will bear his name. Though he had no notion of surpassing the record for longevity set by Julien Yonge, he had hoped to pass many more years in the editorial chair. In February of 1963, however, he was appointed chairman of the social sciences department of the University of Florida. The demands of that position are so great as to impair his efficient functioning as editor of the Quarterly. He, therefore, submitted his resignation to the Board of Directors in December and that body elected Samuel Proctor to succeed to the editorship on July 1, 1964. The present editor has every confidence in his successor and believes that the Society can look forward to a journal of high quality and distinguished reputation. H. J. D. CECIL D. EBY, JR. is assistant professor of English, Washington and Lee University.

MRS. DORIS C. WILES is administrative historian for the St. Au- gustine Historical Society.

EUGENIA B. ARANA (MRS. LUIS R. ARANA) is research historian for the St. Augustine Historical Society.

JERRELL H. SHOFNER is assistant professor of history at Georgia Southern College, Statesboro, Georgia.

EDWIN C. BEARSS is research historian for the Vicksburg Nation- al Park.

Lou RICH was a student in de Department of history at Florida State University. She is presently living in Richmond, Vir- ginia.

JOE M. RICHARDSON is assistant professor of history at the Uni- versity of Mississippi.

[ 412 ] THE FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY

Published in July, October, January, and April by the Florida Historical Society

HERBERT J. DOHERTY, JR., Editor SAMUEL PROCTOR, Associate Editor

EDITORIAL BOARD DOROTHY DODD THEODORE PRATT State Librarian Historical Novelist CHARLTON W. TEBEAU LUIS RAFAEL ARANA University of Miami Castillo de San Marcos DAISY PARKER DENA SNODGRASS Florida State University State Chamber of Commerce JOHN K. MAHON BAYNARD KENDRICK University of Florida Tampa Tribune ALBERT C. MANUCY BENJAMIN F. ROGERS National Park Service Jacksonville University

Publication of this Quarterly was begun in April, 1908, but after six numbers it was suspended in July, 1909. In July, 1924, publication was resumed and has been continuous since that date. The Florida Historical Society supplies the Quarterly to its members. The annual membership fee is five dollars, but special memberships of ten, twenty-five, fifty, and one hundred dollars are available. Correspondence relating to membership and subscriptions should be addressed to Margaret Chapman, Executive Secretary, University of South Florida Library, Tampa, Florida. Manuscripts, news, and books for review should be directed to the Quarterly, P. O. Box 14045, Gainesville, Florida. Manu- scripts should be accompanied by a stamped self-addressed return envelope. The Quarterly takes all reasonable precautions for their safety but cannot guarantee their return if not accompanied by stamped return envelopes. Manuscripts must be typewritten, double-spaced, on standard sized white paper, with footnotes numbered consecutively in the text and assembled at the end. Particular attention should be given to following the footnote style of this Quarterly; bibliographies will not be published. The Florida Historical Society and the editors of this Quarterly accept no responsibility for statements made by contributors.